Thunderbirds - The Pilot
by SatNavDan
Summary: A Six-Part Introduction to my series about International Rescue (with a difference). New characters, as well as new takes on older characters. International Rescue race to the rescue of a small island off the coast of Hawaii when the long-silent volcano suddenly awakens!
1. Pre-Titles

THE island of Oauto in the Pacific Ocean located to the North-West of Hawaii. For centuries it had been a most peaceful little place. There was no crime. There had never been reports of violence and everybody who lived in the small villages dotted around the edges had happy and peaceful lives.

The villages were made up of typical old- fashioned wooden buildings. The majority of them were houses, but there were also a few shops, restaurants and bars. The main village located on the southern-tip of the island was a big church. This was actually the only non-wooden or mud- built building on the whole island. It's great steeple could be seen from almost anywhere on the southern-side of the island and on a clear day could be seen from neighbouring Hawaii which was about twenty miles away.

However, the church wasn't the most dominating feature of the island. That belonged to a huge volcanic mountain located virtually right in the middle. Between it and the villages was some of the best farmland in the world. Crops grew remarkably well in the soil. To look at, it was hard to believe that it was once a volcano for there were no records of it ever having erupted. Ever since the first people arrived on the island in 1837, there had been no eruption or even a possible sign of one. There had never been any recorded tremors either so the island's people had no reason to feel that their lives were in danger.

It was early in the morning on a Tuesday in December 2068. There were a few weeks to go until Christmas but preparations were already well underway. At the village school near the church, two young boys were sat on the wall watching the mountain through small wooden telescopes. They were watching a small blue Pick-Up Truck which was making its way up towards an area of trees on the western-side. It was here that the village Christmas Trees were taken from and the men were going to collect the big one for the main village square. There was always a big festival on Christmas Day and this year wouldn't have been any different.

The school bell suddenly rang forcing the children to have to run to their classroom. When they arrived they were met by Sister Bridget one of the Nuns who worked at the school.

"Where have you been?" she demanded ushering them hastily into the classroom. "Why are you two always late?"

"Sorry, Sister Bridget," the boys said as they sat down at their desks.

"So you should be," Sister Bridget scolded as she confiscated the telescopes from them. "Carry on, Sister Julianne."

"Thank you, Sister Bridget," said Sister Julianne who was conducting the lesson. "Now, my children. We shall start off today with a song. You've all heard it before so join in with me." She nodded to Sister Margaret who was at the piano.

The music began to play and the children and Sisters began to sing.

"High on a hill was a lonely goatherd Lay ee odl lay ee odl lay hee hoo

Loud was the voice of the lonely goatherd Lay ee odl lay ee odl oo

Folks in a town that was quite remote heard Lay ee odl lay ee odl lay hee hoo

Lusty and clear from the goatherd's throat heard Lay ee odl lay ee odl oo

O ho lay dee odl lee o, o ho lay dee odl ay O ho lay dee odl lee o, lay dee odl lee o lay"

Due to the stillness of the air, the two men up on the mountain who were collecting the Christmas Trees could just about hear the singing coming from the school.

"There they go again, Mike," remarked Steve.

"Ah, just perfect, Steve," Mike replied. "I'll never get tired of hearing their little voices."

Steve looked around at the trees. "Which one are we going to go for?" he asked. "The chief wants the big one for the main village and these three smaller ones for the north, east and western villages," Mike said.

"So we got to do several trips then?" asked Steve sounding annoyed. He'd wanted to do the job in one trip but could see that their truck could only carry one tree at a time meaning it would probably take all day.

"You got a problem with that?" asked Mike.

Steve did, but he wasn't going to admit it. "No," he lied. "Let's just get on with it." He picked up a big chainsaw from the truck and began to carry it towards the tree.

RUMBLE!

The ground shook slightly causing the leaves to rustle. Some birds in the neighbouring trees took flight in alarm. The rumbling was felt all over the island. In the school, the children stopped singing as the tables rattled. As everyone fell silent, the rumbling then stopped just as suddenly as it had started.

"Come now, children, that's just a truck passing by," Sister Julianne said trying to sound as reassuring as she could. "Let's carry on." So they did.

"Soon her Mama with a gleaming gloat heard Lay ee odl lay ee odl lay hee hoo

What a duet for a girl and goatherd Lay ee odl lay ee odl oo

Ummm (ummm) ...

Odl lay ee (odl lay ee)

Odl lay hee hee (odl lay hee hee)

Odl lay ee..."

"What the hell was that?" Steve asked.

"No idea," Mike replied.

"Come on, let's get on with it."

RUMBLE!

This time the shaking was a lot more violent than it had been the first time. Both men were thrown off their feet. Steve dropped the chainsaw which landed a few feet away from him. As he looked up he stared in alarm as a crack suddenly began to appear in the ground. It swallowed the chainsaw and began to get wider. There was then another sudden shaking which caused the ground to start reshaping. Mike only just managed to jump clear as a tree toppled over and landed on top of their truck. They also couldn't see each other now, but were distracted by the cracks forming in the ground. There was also a great heat coming from within the cracks as bright orange sparks suddenly began shooting upwards.

"STEVE! WE NEED TO GET OUT OF HERE! COME ON!" bellowed Mike. He looked around. "STEVE, WHERE ARE YOU?!"

But Steve couldn't hear Mike above the rumbling. Everyone on the island could feel the shaking. They stopped what they were doing and those indoors ran outside trying to find out what was going on. Chief Bruce Johnson ran out of his office. "BRODY!" he yelled at his deputy. "WHAT IS THIS?!"

"Don't know, Chief!" Brody replied hurrying over. "It seems to be coming from the mountain!"

BOOM!

The peak of the mountain suddenly exploded outwards. Huge chunks of rock went flying and a huge thick cloud of ashy smoke began to rise out from the top. The whole island shuddered so violently that everyone standing was knocked off their feet. When they recovered, they stared in horror at the terrifying sight that lay before them - the volcano had awoken.

The blast was also heard and partly felt on mainland Hawaii twenty miles away. Everyone who was in visual view of the island could also see the huge mushroom- like cloud rising into the sky. Even though it was twenty miles away, it still looked terrifying.

Chief O'Challagen, who was stationed on the North -Western coast of Hawaii knew this was a serious situation. "Oh, man - we're going to need serious help here," he said. "Sergeant, get every available officer you can find and get the choppers and boats ready. We're going to need everything we have."

"Yes, sir!" said the Sergeant hurrying out of the chief's office.

O'Challagen then tried to call Chief Johnson but found the line was engaged. This was because Johnson was already trying to call for help whilst trying to block out the panicked screams from people outside.

"This is Oauto! Chief Johnson here! Volcano eruption! We need help-AARRGHH!" Another violent explosion from the volcano rocked the island knocking him to the floor. He was then able to grab the phone and began shouting desperately into it. "…rescue!" he cried. "CALLING… INTERNATIONAL…RESCUE!"

5! (DUN)

4! (DUN)

3! (DUN)

2! (DUN)

1! (Explosion)

*Thunderbirds theme plays*

"THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO!"


	2. The Volcano

THUNDERBIRD 5 was the massive communications satellite for the top-secret organisation known globally as International Rescue. It was currently orbiting above the Pacific Ocean with its powerful scanners monitoring every frequency for any distress calls. And it wasn't long before it detected one coming from near Hawaii.

The computer sounded an alarm alerting on-duty crew members Kaylee Adams and Katrina Pullman to it. They in turn alerted the Chief Space Monitor Kerry Tracy to come to the main control room.

"What have you got?" Kerry asked after walking through the main doors.

"Got a distress call coming from somewhere near Hawaii," Kaylee said. "I'm just trying to pinpoint its exact location now."

Katrina had been monitoring the area with another computer. "That's not all that I'm getting," she said. "I'm detecting some very strong seismic activity originating from the Island of Oauto."

"Ouato?" repeated Kerry. "What could possibly be causing that? There's virtually nothing there."

"That's exactly where the distress signal is coming from," Kaylee said.

Kerry pondered. "Put the call through," she said.

Kaylee complied and played the message through the speakers.

What they heard sent chills down their spines. " _This is Oauto! Chief Johnson here! Volcano eruption! We need help…AARRGHH!…rescue! CALLING…INTERNATIONAL…RESCUE!_ "

"Volcano?" said Katrina. "I didn't even know there was one there."

"That's the most visible thing on the island," said Kerry. "But that volcano's meant to be extinct."

"Guessing it's not anymore," said Kaylee.

"Get me some satellite imaging," said Kerry.

Katrina tapped on the keys of her computer and used Thunderbird 5's long-range cameras to zoom in towards Hawaii. They couldn't even see the island - just the massive cloud rising from the volcano itself that was spreading out in all directions.

"Oh, God, this isn't good," said Kerry. "There must be loads of trapped people on that island. We need to get there and help out." She hurried over to her control desk and pressed a big red button.

On a secret island located somewhere in the South Pacific, an alarm began sounding in the big mansion and its concealed sub-basements. This was Tracy Island - the paradise home of the Tracy family and the headquarters of International Rescue.

" _Red Alert!_ " a computer voice called out over the speakers. " _Red Alert! Red Alert!_ "

Daniel Tracy, Kerry's younger brother and the commander-in-chief of International Rescue had been at his desk in the big lounge. It wasn't long before he was joined by his family and team. First to arrive were his five daughters, Laura, Katie, Beth, Adrienne and Eloise (everyone called her Wizzy). They were followed by Dr Jodie Hackenbacker, the team's scientist and Dr Rosie Hall, the team's medic. Leanna Jones was next, she was Daniel's goddaughter but had moved to Tracy Island following the disappearance of her parents. Finally there came Daniel's partner Joanne O'Connor and his mother Zoë.

Kerry appeared in a hologram form originating from the eyes of her portrait on the wall at the back of the lounge. "International Rescue, we have a situation."

"Go ahead, Kerry," Daniel said. "What have you got?"

"Massive volcano eruption on the Island of Ouato," Kerry said. "It looks as if the authorities of Hawaii are trying to send boats and helicopters over but I fear the ash-cloud being produced from the volcano could be a major problem for them."

"Is there anything we can do?" asked Laura.

Jodie began to use a computer on the desk. "There might be a way to divert the flow of lava away from the main villages," she said. "I'll get to work on how that could be done. But may I suggest you take the Mole and the Firefly with you. They could both be used to make this happen."

Daniel turned to the girls. "Katie, which Pod are they in?" he asked.

"Firefly's in the vehicle bay and the Mole I believe is in the repair area," she said.

"Don't worry about them," said Jodie. "I'll program them to go to Pod 6. They should be in there by the time you're suited up."

"Thanks, Jodie," said Daniel. "Laura, you'll be ready before us so carry on ahead and we'll follow once the pod is loaded."

"F-A-B, Dad," said Laura.

"Okay, girls," said Daniel. "Thunderbirds are go!"

Being the eldest of the five sisters, Laura was given the job of piloting Thunderbird 1, the supersonic silver, red and blue rocket-powered reconnaissance plane. To get to it she went over to a wall panel located at the back of the lounge on the right-side of the row of portraits. She pulled down the two lamp brackets into what looked like a safety-harness. When they were down the wall panel turned 180-degrees clockwise. She released herself and stepped over onto a revolving express elevator. As it turned clockwise and lowered down at a high speed, robotic arms worked to attach her blue Kevlar-armoured uniform to her. These were put over her regular clothes so that she wouldn't need to take them off prior to having the uniform put on. By the time her trousers, boots, top-section and grey utility-sash were placed upon her, she had reached the bottom of the elevator shaft and the doors opened. She stepped out, fully geared onto a retractable platform that took her out into a massive underground silo which had been built inside one of the island's many caves. It was in here that Thunderbird 1 was kept. The platform stretched right out to the craft to where a seat on a retractable pole was waiting for her. Once the platform had stopped, Laura climbed into the seat and the pole pulled her and the seat inside whilst the walkway retracted back to its original position. Now she was inside, the glass hatch closed up and the trolley that Thunderbird 1 was sitting on began to move diagonally up a tunnel towards its launching bay which was concealed underneath the swimming pool just down from the front of the mansion. As it approached the launch bay, the pool began to slide backwards until it was fully opened. This finished just as Thunderbird 1 came to a stop in the bay. The area was clear and it was ready for launching.

5…4…3…2…1!

The powerful rockets of Thunderbird 1 thundered into life pushing the sleek silver machine up through where the swimming pool had been and it rocketed up into the sky. "Base from Thunderbird 1," Laura said into her radio. "Launch A-Okay. MIDAS system active. Changing to horizontal flight."

Thunderbird 1 changed from flying vertically to horizontally. As it accelerated away from the island, it broke through the sound barrier.

"That's our cue," Daniel told the others. "Let's go."

"Not you, Leanna," said Joanne. "You've got a session with Karolina later."

Leanna moaned. Unlike the others, Leanna was only a trainee and was only able to attend on certain missions. She was approaching her final exam that they'd all had to undertake to make sure they had all the skills and abilities they needed to be a member of International Rescue.

As well as being in charge of International Rescue, Daniel was also one of the pilots of Thunderbird 2, the great green heavy-duty transporter which could carry whatever they needed to the danger zone in one of six module containers that they called 'Pods'. To get to Thunderbird 2, Daniel went over to a large rocket painting located at the opposite end of the portraits. He leaned against the painting and it tilted backwards sending him into a sliding harness down a long twisty tunnel. Just like with Laura heading to Thunderbird 1, Daniel had his blue Kevlar-uniform attached to him by robotic arms on the way down. His uniform was bigger and more chunky than Laura's was and his utility-sash was green. Once all was attached, the part of the slide with the arms on detached and left the harness section with Daniel in to slide on. Up until this point he'd been going head-first backwards along the bottom of the slide, but now the rail moved him round to the top so that he was now going head-first forwards. At the end of the tunnel was Thunderbird 2 itself. The rail extended out from the tunnel in the roof towards an open hatch in the top of the cockpit. When it reached the end, Daniel reached out, grabbed two handlebars and dropped down into the cockpit. The hatch then closed automatically above him. Whilst he had been heading down, the two primary Pod Vehicles: Firefly - a yellow tracked bulldozer with fire-fighting capabilities, and the Mole - an incredibly powerful yellow tunnelling-machine had been automatically programmed by Jodie to travel from where they had been into Pod 6 which was at the end of the line of six pods. Having made sure that the two machines were in the pod, Daniel sat down in his pilot seat and selected the pod on the computer. The conveyor with the pods on began to slide sideways passing underneath Thunderbird 2. Pod 6 was one of two general-purpose pods, the other being Pod 1. These had doors at the front and back to allow any of the fleet of Pod Vehicles to be loaded or unloaded. Pod 2 housed the interchangeable pods. These were little yellow cockpits to which could have various things attached to them depending on what the situation required. This was only used when they were heading for a situation and weren't sure what they'd need. Pod 3 was the heavy-lifting module. Inside were a set of large yellow magnetic grabs which could be used to lift heavy objects such as aircraft, trains or even roofs off buildings. Pod 4 contained the smallest of the five main Thunderbird ships - Thunderbird 4, the little yellow submersible that could withstand the pressure of the depths. Pod 5 was also a general purpose pod but housed a large laboratory at the back which either Jodie or Rosie would use whenever they needed to. With Pod 6 now underneath the main body, Daniel flicked a switch which lowered the main body of Thunderbird 2 down onto the pod. There was a click at the pod was locked into place. Whilst all this had been happening, Katie, Beth, Adrienne, Wizzy and Rosie had travelled down to the hangar via express elevators similar to Laura and had had their uniforms attached on the way down. Katie's uniform was similar to Daniel's only not as chunky and her utility-sash was black. Beth and Adrienne had the exact same design for their suits being specifically designed for use in space. The only difference being was Beth's utility-sash was red and Adrienne's was white. Wizzy's was also different to the others for hers was specifically for use underwater and her sash was yellow to match Thunderbird 4. Rosie's uniform was just white with red crosses on the arms. She had her medical kit bag rather than a utility sash. With everyone and everything aboard, Thunderbird 2 was ready. The big rock-face that concealed the hangar slid downwards so that the great green leviathan could taxi out onto its runway. As it made its way out, the avenue of ten palm trees (five on each side) lowered backwards to allow the ship to pass. It was quite a wide craft and only was the same width of runway pretty much. After passing the palm trees it reached its launching ramp. Having come to a stop, the two forward-pointing wings lowered downwards and the ramp rose up to a forty-five degree angle. The final stage of the launch procedure was when the ramp was fully up and a blast-shield had risen into place behind Thunderbird 2's two mighty red rocket engines.

5…4…3…2…1!

The engines roared into life and Thunderbird 2 moved gracefully off the ramp into the air. A loud rumble was heard as the green Goliath broke through the sound barrier. It climbed high into air away from Tracy Island heading off after Thunderbird 1 towards Ouato. The mission was on.

It didn't take long for Thunderbird 1 to reach the danger zone. As it approached the Island of Oauto, Laura saw the thick cloud of smoke that was rising from the volcano.

"Thunderbirds 2, 5 and base from Thunderbird 1," Laura said into her radio. "I can see the ash-cloud. My God, it looks horrible!"

"Can you show us video?" Daniel asked.

Laura sent the video feed from Thunderbird 1's nose-mounted camera to the others.

"Jesus wept!" exclaimed Wizzy. "That looks terrifying!"

"Any ideas, Jodie?" Daniel asked.

"I need to get a close visual of the volcano itself before I can decide a course of action," Jodie said. "Thunderbird 1, when you get there, can you make a sweep around the mountain so I can see the lava flow?"

"You got it, Jodie," Laura said. "Going in now. Thunderbird 2, what's your ETA?"

"ETA is eight minutes," Daniel replied. "How's the evacuation going?"

"Scans show several boats have made it to the island," Kerry said. "But they not going to risk taking the helicopters in until the ash-cloud has cleared. It's too dangerous."

"Won't affect us though," said Wizzy. "Our ships are made of stronger material."

"That they are, Wizzy," said Daniel.

On the island, frightened villagers were being guided by the Police and other rescue forces away from their homes and villages to waiting boats. The ash-cloud from the volcano had made everything dark and gloomy. A few lava balls were being thrown from the crater and dropping down onto the villages. Several people had near-misses as some landed on roofs of buildings setting them alight. The lava was creeping slowly down the mountain smothering the fields and crops as they went. Trees burned and collapsed as the lava burned them at their bases. Farmers worked frantically to bring their animals down safely and have them transported in lorries down to the waiting boats. A roll-on/roll-off ferry from Pearl Harbor was making its way to the island but it was not going to get there for at least another thirty minutes.

Thunderbird 1 flew over the island and moved in closer towards the volcano. Laura could see all of the people running around yelling orders and trying to get everyone to safety. She kind of wanted to help, but she knew she had her own job to do. She then looked over at the volcano. The boiling hot lava looked somewhat intimidating. Thunderbird 1 was a tough machine, but Laura didn't fancy trying out its incredibly strong metal construction against the heat of the lava. "Base from Thunderbird 1, I'm approaching the volcano now," she said. "I'm patching you in now, Jodie."

"Receiving," Jodie replied. She was sitting at Daniel's desk watching the video from Thunderbird 1. "It was dual-controlled meaning she could control the cameras from Tracy Island as well as Laura could.

Joanne came in bringing Jodie a cup of tea. "My God!" she remarked when she saw the footage.

Laura made a complete sweep around the volcano filming all the sides for Jodie to look at.

"Thanks, Laura," Jodie said. "That's a great help. I'll start trying to find a good place for Thunderbird 2 to get to work."

"F-A-B, Jodie," Laura said. "Thunderbird 2 should be…" She broke off rather suddenly for something had caught her eye. "Oh, my God!"

"What's the matter, Thunderbird 1?" Daniel asked over the radio.

"There's a man down there waving at me!" Laura said. "He's dangerously close to the lava. I'm going to winch him up."

The man waving to was Mike - one of the two men who'd been working up the mountain when the volcano first erupted. Laura brought Thunderbird 1 lower towards the ground and opened the large hatch underneath the craft before dropping a rescue harness on a cable towards him. Mike grabbed the harness and once he'd put it on, Laura winched him up again. She'd put Thunderbird 1 onto autopilot so that she could check him over.

"Hello, sir," Laura said once the Mike was aboard. "Are you hurt?"

"No, I'm fine," Mike said. "But Steve's still down there somewhere. Please, you have to find him!"

Laura was alarmed. "Where did you last see him?" she asked.

"We were logging about halfway up the mountain when the volcano erupted," Mike said. His voice was shaky. "Steve got thrown somewhere and I haven't seen him since."

Laura sat Mike down in one of Thunderbird 1's two passenger seats and then returned to her own seat. "Thunderbird 5, we have another situation," she said. "The man I've picked up says he was with someone on the mountainside at the time of the eruption. He thinks he might still be there somewhere. Could you run a scan and see if you can help me find him?"

Kerry looked at the mountain via her monitor screens. "Are you really sure about that, Thunderbird 1?" she asked. "The whole top section of the mountain is covered in lava. There's no way anyone could be alive up there."

"Kerry, please, we have to be sure," Laura said. "I know how small the chances are, but we need to still look."

Kerry sighed. "You're right," she said. "Commencing scan."

The two Thunderbird ships began to scan the western-side of the volcano. But using thermal-imaging to locate body-heat in an area filled with boiling lava was going to be like looking for a piece of hay in a giant stack full of needles.

"Any sign of him?" Mike asked anxiously.

"Not yet," Laura replied. She looked very closely at the few trees that remained above the lava. It was only a matter of minutes before they too would fall. Then, as one toppled over, Laura saw something leap from it to another. "Hang on, I think we might have something," she said. She aimed one of the cameras at the tree and zoomed in. sure enough, there was a man. He was clinging onto the tree for dear life and was shaking like a leaf. "Does your friend have dark skin and black hair?" Laura asked Mike.

"Yes, yes, he does!" Mike replied. "Can you see him?"

"I can, yes," Laura said. "He's on one of those trees down there. Thunderbird 5, I've found him. I'm going to get him."

"Be quick, Thunderbird 1," Kerry said over the radio. "Those trees aren't going to last much longer."

"I'll have him aboard before you can say Grandma's pizza!" Laura said. She switched on Thunderbird 1's autopilot once again and jumped from her seat. She opened the hatch again and put her helmet on to protect her head from the heat. She also attached a jet-pack to her back.

Steve had never been so scared in his life. He looked around at the lava around the base of the trees. He could feel the tree starting to move slightly as the lava burned away the trunk. He just happened to look up and he saw Thunderbird 1 hovering above him. "HEY!" he yelled waving his left arm frantically. "HEEEEYYY!"

"He's seen me," Laura said. "That's good. Going down now." As Laura dropped out of Thunderbird 1 and activated her jet-pack, she felt the intense heat from the lava in the air around her. "Blimey, this is hot!" she gasped. "Anyone got any sun-cream?"

"Laura, stop joking around, will you?" barked Kerry. "That tree's about to go."

"I'M OVER HERE!" Steve screamed frantically as Laura approached him. "HURRY! IT'S GONNA GO!"

"Relax, sir, I've got you," Laura said. She pressed a button on her wrist-controller. The safety-harness was lowered down yet again and Laura helped Steve into it. They were just in time for with a sickening crack, the tree trunk gave way and it toppled over into the lava. The remaining three trees nearby also toppled over as well. There were now no more trees standing on the top half of the mountain.

Mike watched with relief as Laura and Steve arrived safely back into Thunderbird 1. "Steve!" he cried.

"Mike!" Steve cried back. Once Laura had released him from the harness, he ran over to Mike and the two men embraced. And then they kissed, much to Laura's surprise.

"Okay…they're a couple," Laura whispered to herself. "Thunderbird 5, both men are safe. I'm going to drop them off at the boats."

"F-A-B, Thunderbird 1," said Kerry. "Thunderbird 2, I see you're on final approach to the island."

"Indeed we are," Daniel said.

Katie, Beth, Adrienne and Wizzy all whistled when they saw the volcano.

"Mother Mary, that's even scarier than I thought!" remarked Adrienne.

"And how exactly are we meant to stop that?" asked Rosie.

"Yeah, I don't think Firefly's powerful enough to put that fire out," joked Wizzy.

Katie gave her youngest sister a look. "Of course it can't you silly…" She broke off suddenly noticing the look Daniel was giving her. "Sorry, Dad," she said hastily.

Daniel then spoke into the radio. "Jodie, we're here. You got anything for us?"

"Yes, I do actually," Jodie said. "There's a large open area on the eastern side of the island. There are no villages around there so if you could use the Mole to create a relief tunnel, it might just release the pressure off the lava rising out the top of the volcano and send it into the sea. It can cause no harm there."

"What about the Firefly?" asked Beth. "Can that be used at all?"

"The foam cannot extinguish the lava but it might be strong enough to slow it down," Jodie said. "Also there's a few obstructions leading up to the base of the mountain. The Mole would not be able to get to it unless the path was cleared."

"Right then," said Daniel. "Beth, you and Wizzy take the Mole. Adie, you take Firefly and clear a path for them."

"F-A-B," said the three sisters. They got up and headed out of the cockpit.

Thunderbird 1 was just landing in the main village square in front of the church. She could see what looked to be most of the island's population hurrying to get into the boats. Chief Johnson came running up when he saw Thunderbird 1 land.

"Hello, Chief," Laura said as she disembarked. "Got a couple of extra passengers for your boats."

"Mike! Steve! Thank God!" Chief Johnson exclaimed when he saw them. "Oh, man! I'd forgotten you two were up on the mountain!" He turned to Laura. "Thank you, International Rescue."

"You're welcome, gentlemen," said Laura. A loud rumble from the volcano made them all jump. "May I suggest you leave quickly," Laura said. Steve and Mike hurried off towards the beach where the boats were waiting. "How many are left, Chief?" Laura asked.

"We've got over half the people off the island," Chief Johnson said. "But there's still at least forty that are still making their way here."

Another rumble made them look up. This time it was the sound of Thunderbird 2's engines as it passed overhead.

"Good to see you, Thunderbird 2," Laura said into her radio. "Any updates?"

"Jodie's given us a plan to divert the lava and hopefully save the villages," Daniel answered. "Adie's going to use the Firefly to clear a path up to the base of the volcano so that Beth and Wizzy can tunnel into its heart using the Mole."

Chief Johnson was startled by this. "You have a machine that can withstand that heat?" he asked.

"Yes, sir, we do," said Laura. They jumped again as another small explosion erupted from the volcano. "Please get everyone off as fast as you can."

"On it," said Chief Johnson. He saw some more pick-up trucks loaded with people approaching and he hurried over towards them. "OKAY, PEOPLE, OVER HERE! LET'S GO! LET'S GO!"

Laura turned her attention back to Thunderbird 2 which was preparing to land in a field alongside the main road that looped round the coastline. The four vertical thrusters gently eased the great ship into a gentle landing.

"We're down," Daniel said. "You ready, girls?"

"Ready," Adrienne answered from the cockpit of the Firefly.

"All set," said Beth from inside the Mole.

Daniel nodded to Katie. She flicked a switch. The clamps holding Pod 6 in place were released and the four landing legs of Thunderbird 2 lifted the main body clear. The front door-ramp was then lowered to allow the two vehicles to disembark. The Firefly came out first followed by the Mole.

"Okay, Jodie, we've disembarked," Adrienne said. "Where do we need to go."

"I'm sending you the route now," Jodie answered over the radio. There's some trees and bushes that will need clearing. There's also a farm as well. Might be best if you avoid demolishing those though."

Adrienne saw a dotted yellow line appear on her computer screen. "Got it," she said. "Keep up, Mole."

"Right behind you, Firefly," Beth answered.

Daniel and Katie watched as the two machines headed off towards off towards the volcano.

"There'll be cutting it fine," Katie said.

"I know," Daniel replied. "Laura, how's the evacuation going?"

"Chief said over half the population are now off the island," Laura replied. "But there's still a few to go though. I'm going to assist them."

"Well done," said Daniel. "Keep me informed."

The Tracy Mansion was quite a large and glamorous building. It had pretty much everything everyone could want. A high-tech kitchen combined with dining room, a large lounge with very comfortable seats and sofas with Daniel's desk at one end. A row of seven portraits between the painting of the rocket that Daniel had first gone to the Moon in and the wall panel Laura used to get to Thunderbird 1 had Daniel, Kerry and the five sisters with space underneath for more to be added. Once Leanna was fully qualified she'd be having her portrait on the wall as well. On one of the tables next to the large leather sofa was a photo of Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward. She was the London Agent for International Rescue. If there was ever anyone who was need to go sneaking around finding information for them, it was Penelope.

On the second floor of the mansion was where all the bedrooms were located. There were twenty in total with ten on each side. The West-Wing housed those belonging to Daniel & Joanne and the five sisters. There was also one for Kerry, but it didn't get used very much for Kerry was mostly aboard Thunderbird 5. The remaining three rooms were for guests, not that they had guests very often. It was the same for the ones in the East-Wing. Seven were occupied for Jodie, Rosie, Zoë, Leanna, housekeeper Kyrano Belargant, his daughter Karolina who was of Polish origin, and the other was for Joanne's daughters Sian and Cassidy who would be returning for the Christmas holidays very shortly. The most regular visitors they had were the girls' American cousins, the Tracy brothers Scott, Virgil, John, Gordon and Alan. or if it wasn't them it would be Lady Penelope and her bodyguard, butler and chauffeur Aloysius Parker.

In the lower levels of the mansion was a games room and outside courts where the team could play a variety of different sports including football, basketball, archery, darts, pool and even arcade games. They could also set up nets on the beach or in the swimming pool in order to play volleyball or water-polo. There was also an indoor swimming pool and gymnasium for if the weather was bad.

It was in the gymnasium where Leanna currently was. Dressed in her sports gear, she was taking part in a sparring match against Karolina using metal batons. Karolina was the head of security for International Rescue yet she did not have a ship of her own. She was also in change of combat training should anyone need to use it.

"Come on, Leanna, you slipping," Karolina said after she'd used a baton to trip Leanna up.

"Sorry, Karolina," Leanna said as she picked herself up. "My mind's not on it today."

"What the matter?" Karolina asked. "Something distracting you?"

"I just wish I was out on the mission with the others," Leanna said. "I'm sure when they get back I'll be better…WOAH!"

Karolina had swung a baton round causing Leanna to hastily block it. "You can't afford to be distracted if you're in a fight," Karolina said as their sparring continued. "You need to be ready for anything."

Leanna swung one of batons round at Karolina, but Karolina quickly caught it. She twisted it round causing Leanna to go head-over-heels and landed on the crash-mat again.

"God dammit!" Leanna sighed as Karolina helped her up. "Do you do this to the others?"

"Always," Karolina replied with a grin.

"Yeah, well, one of these days, you're mine," said Leanna.

Karolina chuckled. "I no doubt," she said. She then turned to walk away.

Leanna saw that she had an opportunity and decided to go for it. But as she tried to carefully run up behind Karolina, she accidentally trod on a crash-mat. It made a small noise which Karolina heard. She spun round and used her right leg to trip Leanna up who landed on yet another crash-mat.

"You have to do a lot better than that," Karolina said. She then left the gym leaving Leanna to curse herself.

The route up to the base of the volcano proved to be a tougher challenge that Adrienne had originally thought it would be. Several fires had been started on trees and bushes by falling lava balls and she was having to use the Firefly's water-cannons to extinguish them before she could then clear a path for the Mole using the Firefly's bulldozer blade.

"Can you not hurry this up a little, Adie?" Beth asked. "If the lava gets to the spot before us then there will be nothing we can do."

"If you want to try pushing your way through without me, fine!" Adrienne retorted. "Then if you get stuck, don't say I didn't warn you."

"Cut that out, both of you!" Daniel barked crossly over the radio. "Just get on with it!"

"Sorry, Dad," Beth and Adrienne said together.

The Firefly pushed through a hedge and was now on the roadway leading up to the farm. There were a few trees burning near the house but they paid no attention to them. But as they approached, Wizzy thought she saw movement coming from the front of the house.

"I don't believe it!" she exclaimed. "There are people still there!"

Adrienne and Beth looked and saw them as well.

"What the hell are they doing?" asked Beth.

Daniel raised his binoculars and looked over at the house. "Are you kidding me?!" he said. "Looks like they're trying to get all their belongings into those pick-up trucks!"

"Have they no idea what's even happening?" asked Katie.

"Should we help them?" asked Adrienne.

"No, you both continue to the drilling position," said Daniel. "We'll deal with them." He then nodded to Katie who nodded back.

Thunderbird 2's vertical jets fired up again lifting the main body into the air once more but leaving Pod 6 on the ground. The landing legs rose back into position as it began to head towards the farmyard.

"Hurry! Hurry!" the farmer was shouting to his family. "We need to get everything out before we go!"

"Are you crazy?" his wife shouted back. "That lava's going to be here any minute!"

"We can't leave anything behind, it's all we have!" the farmer said. "Now where's your mother!"

The wife sighed. "I'll go get her," she said running inside. "MOTHER, HURRY UP! WE NEED TO GO!"

An elderly woman was in her bedroom on the top floor of the house putting on her makeup. "I'll be down in five minutes, dear!" she called. "Just got to do my lipstick!"

The wife sighed again. "For heaven's sake!" she said running up the stairs into her mother's bedroom. "We have no time for this, we must go!"

The farmer, his teenage children and farm workers were suddenly alerted by the rumbling of engines coming from the roadway. They turned to see the Firefly and the Mole entering the farmyard. They began to run forwards waving.

"Sorry, guys, but we can't stop," said Adrienne even though she knew they could not hear her. Driving round the back of the house, they saw nothing but barnes and a cattle shed, which was empty due to the animals having already been put into trucks and taken away. "Hate to do this," Adrienne said. "Hold for a second, Beth. I just need to demolish something."

The two vehicles stopped as the farmer and his men gathered around the two vehicles.

"Hey, can you help us get our stuff out of here!" the farmer called up towards the Mole.

Wizzy opened the door. "Sorry, sir, but you need to leave," she said. "Our task is to get the volcano."

Adrienne had lowered the Firefly's bulldozer blade and activated the powerful cannon that was located in its nose. Normally it was used for firing nitro-glycerine shells into fires to extinguish them, but it could also be used for demolishing things as well, like she was about to do now. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Adrienne called over the Firefly's tannoy. She quickly made sure that nobody was in front of the vehicle before firing a shell into the empty Cattle Shed. It exploded and collapsed in a pile of twisted metal, much to the shock of the farmer and his workers. Adrienne then drove the Firefly forwards using the blade to push the debris out of the way. The Mole followed on leaving the men at a loss for words.

Suddenly the volcano spat out another round of lava balls. One of which landed on the roof of the farm cottage. The roof was ablaze instantly and it soon spread through the wooden rafters. The farmer's wife and her mother were almost at the stairs when the ceiling suddenly began to collapse around them. "MOTHER, LOOK OUT!" the wife cried. She pulled her mother back away from the falling ceiling into her and husband's room. But a heavy beam dropped down and caused the floor to collapse underneath them. Both women screamed as they fell into the kitchen below. More beams fell around them and burning blames roared around them.

The farmer and his men saw what had happened and were horrified. "SARAH!" screamed the farmer running towards the house. "SARAH! WHERE ARE YOU!"

"GET BACK!" one of the workers yelled. He grabbed the farmer and pulled him back just as one of the corners of the house suddenly collapsed.

It was at this moment that Thunderbird 2 appeared over the farmyard.

"Dad, look!" Katie gasped.

Daniel looked over and saw the state of the house. "Jesus!" he exclaimed. "I hope there was nobody in there."

Jackie, the farmer's daughter, was the first to spot Thunderbird 2. She and her younger brother Edward then ran round to find their father. "DAD! DAD! THERE'S A THUNDERBIRD!" they shouted pointing up.

The farmer looked up and saw the green Thunderbird approaching. "HEY!" he yelled waving. "OVER HERE! HELP!"

The children and workers all waved urgently too and shouted out.

"They're waving to us," Katie said.

"I have eyes, Katie," Daniel said getting up. "There must be trouble. Take us down. Rosie, come with me."

"Yes, Mr Tracy," Rosie replied as Katie landed Thunderbird 2 in the yard round the front of the house.

The elevator from the cockpit to the floor allowed Daniel and Rosie to leave the ship. Daniel had collected his robotic arms which he called the 'Jaws of Life' beforehand as he felt he may need to do some heavy-lifting.

"Is there anyone inside?" Daniel asked the farmer.

"Yes, my wife and her mother are in there!" the farmer cried. "Please, you have to get them out!"

Daniel looked at the burning house. The hologram scanner in his helmet began to search through the partly-collapsed house searching for signs of life. And it didn't take long for it to detect two bodies lying still in the kitchen. "Stay here," he said and he rushed into the burning house. Even though there were chunks of broken and burning wood all around him, Daniel wasn't afraid for he knew his suit would protect him. He soon reached the kitchen and found Sarah and her mother trapped under a large roof support-beam. He used his jaws to lift the beam off them. His scans told him that both women were still alive, although Sarah's mother was unconscious. Sarah was barely conscious herself but she began to cough as Daniel used his jaws to lift them both up off the floor. "Can you walk?" Daniel asked.

"I…*cough*…think so…*cough-cough*," Sarah spluttered.

Daniel lifted Sarah's mother over his left shoulder and held onto Sarah with the other arm. The whole house then shuddered again as more of it collapsed around them. They made it through the flames and out to safety as the rest of the house finally gave way and collapsed completely.

The farmer no longer cared about his house and the things inside it. He was just relieved to see that his wife was safe. The two had an emotional hug with their children as well.

"Come on, everyone, we need to get out of here," Daniel said.

Everyone ran back round to the front where Thunderbird 2 and the four pick-up trucks were waiting for them. Daniel carefully placed Sarah's mother into the lead pick-up truck.

"I'll go with them to the boats and give her a check-over," Rosie said to Daniel.

"You a doctor?" asked Sarah, clearly not having seen the Red Cross symbol on Rosie's uniform.

"I am," said Rosie.

Daniel nodded in agreement. "We'll pick you up later," Daniel said. "Go, go, go."

Everyone jumped into the trucks and raced out of the farmyard. Daniel ran back into Thunderbird 2 and Katie lifted the great ship off the ground yet again. More lava balls fell from the sky. They bounced harmlessly off Thunderbird 2's super-strong metal body but they soon had the farm's barns alight as well. Luckily nobody was in danger there anymore so they could just let it burn.

Firefly and the Mole were getting close to the base of the volcano. The lava was now three-quarters of the way down the mountain so they were going to have to work quickly if they were to succeed. There was just one more row of trees that were blocking the way and Adrienne found them difficult to dislodge.

"You might have to pull those down," Beth said over the radio.

"Yes, I think you could be right," agreed Adrienne.

The two vehicles reversed a small way so that Adrienne could fire two grappling hooks from Firefly to the trees. But as she began to pull, another lava ball landed on top of one of the trees, setting it and the one next to it alight.

"Okay, this is getting tricky," Wizzy said.

"You don't say," Adrienne replied. "I'm going to spray them."

"Don't use too much foam, Adie," Jodie said over the radio. "You've already used up a third of your supply. You need to save as much as you can so you can keep the lava away from the Mole."

"F-A-B, Jodie," said Adrienne. "I'll only need a little bit anyway." Using the computer to lock onto the trees, Adrienne fired green foam from the rear-mounted cannons onto the trees. Within seconds the fire was out. "That's got it," Adrienne said. She revved the Firefly's engines and began to pull once more. The trees creaked, groaned and then toppled to the ground. She then released the grapples and wound them back in before using the blade to push them out of the way.

All that remained now was to charge through some bushes, which was very easy and they now found themselves at the base of the volcano. Adrienne kept the Firefly back whilst Beth manoeuvred the Mole round to the position that Jodie had given her. They looked up at the lava which was gradually approaching them. It had looked intimidating from a distance, but being this close certainly made them feel a little nervous.

Beth took a deep breath. "This is the Mole," she said. "We're ready."

"Good luck," Daniel said over the radio.

"Be careful," said Kerry.

"You can do this," finished Jodie.

"Firefly, give us cover," said Beth. "We're going in."

"F-A-B!" said Adrienne. She aimed the Firefly's foam-cannons up at the approaching lava and began to spray it with the green foam.

Beth moved some levers and pressed some buttons. The Mole's trolley tilted forwards so that the main section was pointing downwards. As it did so, the drill-nose began to spin and the crawler-tracks on the side of its body began to move. The tracks underneath the main section pushed it forwards into the base of the mountain and the drilling commenced. Adrienne watched as the rocks were broken up into tiny pieces and thrown around all directions as the Mole slowly disappeared into the mountain. Some pieces fell onto the Firefly but bounced off harmlessly.

"Hey, watch where you're throwing those rocks, Beth!" Adrienne said. "Katie only had her washed this the other day!"

"Adie, concentrate!" Daniel said over the radio.

The Mole continued to burrow down through the mountain. A screen with circles on it told Beth where she needed to go.

"How far down do we need to go, Jodie?" Beth asked.

"About ninety metres from where you are now," Jodie replied. She was monitoring the Mole's progress on one of the computer screens at Daniel's desk. "That'll take you just short of the lava pit in the middle of the volcano."

Kerry was also watching the Mole's progress from Thunderbird 5. "You can't take the Mole right in, Beth," she said. "I know it's designed for environments such as this, but we can't have you getting stuck in there and if you do, we may not be able to get you out."

"Now you tell us this!" Wizzy said.

Beth was puzzled. "But I thought the whole idea was to create a tunnel down to the centre?" she said.

"Your drilling is weakening the rocks around you, remember?" said Jodie. "Once you get to within ten metres of the lava, you must then reverse as quickly as you can. The pressure from the volcano will do the rest."

Beth and Wizzy exchanged a look. The Mole was a fast digger, but lava could travel much faster if the pressure was strong enough. Beth glanced at the gauge telling her how much further they needed to go. They still had another sixty metres to go.

Adrienne continued to spray the foam onto the lava above the tunnel made by the Mole. It was keeping the lava at bay at that point but she could see that it was being spread outwards and around the sides. "Jodie, I'm not sure how long I can keep this up for," she said. "I can only spray one area at its creeping round the sides."

"Just make sure none of it covers the tunnel," Jodie replied. "How much foam do you have left?"

Adrienne looked at the gauge. "Just under half," she said. "I just hope that's enough."

The Mole continued to tunnel down. They now had only forty metres to go. Wizzy and Beth could feel the vibrations around them. These were partly down to the Mole itself but also the rumbling of the volcano was causing some minor earth-tremors.

"Thirty metres," Beth announced.

Everyone was silent. Adrienne sat very still in the cab of the Firefly.

"Twenty-five," said Beth.

Daniel and Katie glanced at each other with concerned faces.

"Twenty."

Laura and Rosie watched the volcano from the village.

"Fifteen."

Kerry, Kaylee and Katrina listened from Thunderbird 5.

"Ten," said Beth.

"That's far enough," said Jodie. "Reverse now!"

Beth slammed the Mole into reverse. It responded with a will and scurried back up the tunnel it had made. The vibrations were increasing due to the weakened rocks around them. The pressure from the volcano was also weaking it. They could only hope it would last long enough for the Mole to make it back to the surface.

Adrienne was sweating slightly. The lava that had been pushed round the sides by the foam was getting dangerously close to the bottom, and to the Mole's trolley. "Come on, come on, come on, come on," she said, her heart was beating faster than normal.

Then to the relief of everyone, the Mole emerged from the tunnel and positioned itself back onto its trolley. It then tilted back down into its normal position.

"We're out!" Beth said.

"Well done, now beat it!" Daniel said.

Beth reversed the Mole away from the tunnel before turning and heading back down the route that they had come. Adrienne waited until they were clear before cutting the power to the hoses. She then turned Firefly around and hurried off after the Mole. Daniel and Katie watched the tunnel from Thunderbird 2 whilst Jodie and Kerry watched via the video feed from Thunderbird 2's cameras.

A deep rumbling could be heard from within the volcano. Everyone standing on the island turned their heads towards the volcano. Everyone on the boats looked back as well.

"Here it comes," said Laura.

With a loud BOOM a huge fountain of lava burst out through the tunnel created by the Mole. The lava cascaded across the now deserted farmland before reaching the ocean. It went no further than that though and just bubbled like soup on a stove. Everyone then looked up at the crater of the volcano. It was no longer spitting out great balls of lava or the thick choking smoke that it had been producing about a minute earlier. Instead, it looked as though it was calming down. The rumbling was getting quieter and the smoke was thinning out. The lava too was no longer coming out from the top and no longer appeared to be spreading out.

"It worked!" Daniel said. "The release of the pressure has calmed it down. Well done, everyone!"

"That's a relief," said Wizzy.

"You can say that again!" agreed Beth.

"Sure was close," finished Adrienne.

All the islanders and boat crews began to cheer. Although they knew they still had to be taken to safety until it was certain the volcano was no longer a threat and that they could return to repair any damage and clean-up the mess. Miraculously, not much damage had been done. Only the village on the very North tip of the island had suffered any real damage. At least six houses had been engulfed by the lava and destroyed, but everyone who lived there had already been evacuated.

As the Mole and the Firefly returned to Pod 6, Thunderbird 2 landed above. Once both vehicles were inside, the door closed and the main body was lowered down over the pod. With the pod locked into place, it then took off once more. It's job was completed.

"How's the evacuation, Laura?" Daniel asked over the radio.

"Just three boats left, Dad," Laura said. "You go on home. I will bring Rosie back in Thunderbird 1."

"F-A-B," said Daniel. "See you later."

Laura and Rosie waved as Thunderbird 2 roared overhead and headed out to sea. They saw the people in the boats cheering and waving. Thunderbird 2 made a little roll from side to side with its wings as if to say 'you're welcome' before disappearing.

Laura and Rosie waited to make sure the last few people boarded the boats safely.

"Is that everyone?" Laura asked Chief Johnson.

"Yes, ma'am, that's the lot," the Chief replied.

Laura nodded. "You go too," she said.

Chief Johnson jumped into the boat. "Okay, skipper, let us be gone!" he called to the boat's captain.

Laura and Rosie watched and waved as the boat left the small harbor and followed the flotilla of craft back towards Hawaii.

"That's us done," said Rosie. "Let's get out of here."

"F-A-B," Laura replied.

They climbed into Thunderbird 1 that was still parked in the village square in front of the big church. Rosie sat herself down in one of the passenger seats as Laura made preparations for take-off. "Thunderbird 5, this is Thunderbird 1. Mission complete."

"F-A-B, Thunderbird 1," acknowledged Kerry.

Laura pulled back on the controls. Thunderbird 1's vertical jets lifted it up off the ground. Once it was safely above the height of the tip of the church spire, the sleek silver rocket turned before racing off over the sea after Thunderbird 2.

Zoë walked into the kitchen to begin cooking the dinner. It was quite a big task to make enough meals for such a large household, but she never minded for she always had the help of Kyrano and Joanne. For example, she could peel potatoes whilst Joanne mixed up pastry and Kyrano chopped up carrots. They all knew what they had to do and when to do it, and dinner was never late. However, it was very rarely the same time every day for it depended on whether Daniel and the girls were out or not. They often got a little apprehensive before dinner for there was always the possibility that they might get called out to another emergency. Luckily however that did not happen often.

As Zoë got out the pots and pans ready for the soup and Kyrano prepared the oven, both of them soon realised that Joanne wasn't helping. Instead she was sitting at the dining table reading a letter that the mail plane had brought. Judging by her expression, Zoë could tell that something was troubling her, but she didn't feel that it was her place to ask. Kyrano had noticed it too and was about go over to speak to Joanne when she let out a small sob, got up from the table and hurried from the room.

"Troubling news by the look of it, Mrs Tracy," observed Kyrano.

"So it would seem, Kyrano," Zoë replied. "Oh, dear. I do hope it's not what I think it is."

"Her daughters again?" Kyrano asked.

Zoë sighed. "Yes, I fear so," she said.

It was no secret in the Tracy household that there had been a fair bit of trouble coming from the school in England where Sian and Cassidy attended. They were not the cause of the trouble, but it was the work of one Eugene Thompson. He was a bully from Sian's year who loved to pick on anyone in the years beneath him. He particularly liked to bully Cassidy for reasons nobody could understand. Hardly a week went by without a letter being sent to Joanne informing her that Cassidy had been taken into the school's Medical Room after having been beaten up by Thompson. What made things worse was that the school's headmaster didn't seem to be doing anything about it. Other kids were picked on and beaten up too, but somehow Thompson always got away with it. It was really upsetting Joanne, and in turn was making Daniel rather angry.

Karolina and Leanna were returning from the gym when they saw Joanne cross the hallway from the kitchen to the lounge. She then shut the door behind her.

"Jo?" Leanna asked heading for the door.

Karolina stopped her. "Leave her," she said. "When that door closes, you no go in."

Leanna watched as Karolina headed off into the kitchen to talk to her father. She looked back at the door to the lounge. She walked quietly up to the door and put her ear up against it. But all she could hear was the sound of Joanne crying. As far as she knew, secrets were not something anyone on Tracy Island kept from each other. But then again, there were always some things that were never said.

Thunderbird 2 was not too far away from Tracy Island now. The island was on the radar and its distinctive shape was just visible on the horizon.

"Nearly home, girls," said Daniel.

Beth stretched her arms above her head and yawned. "I could use a shower," she said.

Adrienne sniffed the air. "You sure do," she teased.

"Oi!" exclaimed Beth pushing her sister off her seat.

Wizzy and Katie both burst out laughing. Daniel said nothing, but he couldn't help a small chuckle that was occurring inside of him.

"Still at least we're home first," said Wizzy once they'd stopped.

"Oh yeah?" Laura's voice suddenly said over the radio.

WHOOSH! Everyone except Daniel jumped as Thunderbird 1 suddenly shot past them.

"Damn it!" said Katie. She applied power to Thunderbird 2's engines and set off in pursuit.

The efforts were rather futile, for Thunderbird 1 was already over the island by the time they were on the final approach. Daniel could never understand why the girls always saw it as a race to get back home for it was always Thunderbird 1 who'd reach the island first due to it being so much quicker than Thunderbird 2 was. Still, he could help but chuckle again as he saw the expressions on Katie, Wizzy, Beth and Adrienne's faces as they watched Thunderbird 1 descend vertically back through the open pool to land back in its launching bay.

"One day, Laura, one day," Katie muttered.

Thunderbird 2 now began its own landing procedure. It approached the runway just like an ordinary aircraft. The palm trees folded back once more as it passed over the tarmac. It landed vertically before taxiing along through the avenue of trees and into its hangar. Once inside the door it stopped on a turntable and was turned 180 degrees before reversing back to where it had started. The landing legs then lifted the main body clear of Pod 6 and the conveyor moved it and the other five pods back into the vehicle bay. This final movement marked the end of yet another successful mission for International Rescue.

Daniel, Katie, Beth, Wizzy and Adrienne met up with Laura and Rosie in the elevator from the sub-basements to the mansion. Playful banter had been going between the five sisters whilst Daniel and Rosie just smirked to each other.

"I still don't care how fast your craft is, Laura," Katie said as they left the elevator. "We _will_ beat you back here one day."

"Dream on, sis, dream on," teased Laura.

"Okay, that's enough now," said Daniel. He then sniffed the air. "Mmm, dinner's coming along nicely by the smell of it."

As they approached the doors leading to the lounge and the kitchen, they all stopped when they noticed that the lounge door was closed.

"Who's in there?" asked Wizzy.

Daniel frowned. He had a feeling he knew what this meant. He looked into the kitchen and saw Zoë, Jodie, Kyrano, Karolina and Leanna in there. They all saw him and remained silent. Daniel pointed towards the door. Zoë nodded glumly. Daniel then sighed. "Go wait in there please," he said to the others.

Rosie and the five sisters complied immediately without a word. Seeing as Joanne was the only one of them not present, they too felt they knew what this was about. Laura waited until they were all in the kitchen and then she shut the door. Daniel then went over to the lounge door and knocked three times. No reply came from inside the room, but the sound of approaching footsteps could be heard. Moments later, the door opened and there stood Joanne. Her eyes were almost bright red and she had snail-like trails on her cheeks where tears had been trickling down. She threw her arms around him and began to sob into his shoulder. Daniel guided her gently back inside the room whilst still hugging her and then he closed the door behind them.

"Cassidy?" Daniel asked after a few moments.

"No," Joanne answered hoarsely. "It's Sian this time."

Daniel was taken aback. He knew Sian would often defend her sister against Eugene Thompson, but he had never laid a finger on her for she was in the same year as him. "What's happened?" he asked.

Joanne removed her arms from around Daniel and went over to the desk. She picked up the letter that she had received and handed it to him. Daniel read the letter in silence. What was written on it made him want to be sick.

Dear Miss O'Connor

We are once again writing to inform you about the current positions of your two daughters Sian and Cassidy O'Connor at our school. Yesterday during lunch-break, Sian was seen assaulting fellow pupil Eugene Thompson outside the Sports Hall. Several witnesses including PE teachers Miss Mitchell and Mr Bryant saw Sian confront Mr Thompson about the alleged bullying of her sister Cassidy. When Mr Thompson denied the accusations, Sian slapped him across the face causing him to punch her back in retaliation. Normally we would have put her in detention for this but that will have to be put on hold until she is discharged from the Medical Bay for she suffered a serious black eye along with a concussion due to Mr Thompson continuing to attack her even after she was on the floor. Mr Thompson has been given an official warning by myself and I regret that I shall have to do the same to Sian. However I will not do that until after the Christmas Holidays.

I apologise for any distress this will undoubtedly cause you and if it's possible, I would like to see you to discuss your daughter's unprovoked attack on Mr Thompson before the end of term.

Yours,

Mr D. K. Nightingale - Headmistress

Daniel couldn't believe what he was reading. "Is this a joke?" he asked.

"Tell me it is!" Joanne replied with a raised voice. "I've never seen such bullshit in my life!"

Daniel looked back at the letter. "Okay, one - Sian would not just randomly attack a person. We all know that this Thompson git causes trouble. They've told us themselves! Two - how can he deny that he doesn't physically bully Cassidy as well as verbally. That black eye that she's got showed us that. And three - an _official_ warning?! How the HELL has this kid not been expelled yet?! Why does Mr Nightingale not expel him?"

Joanne's face was turning red as well. "If I could answer that, I would!" she snapped. Then she began to cry again. "Oh, Daniel," she cried running back into his arms again. "This is getting too much. What can we do?"

Daniel sighed. "I wish I knew, Jo," he replied. "I wish I knew."

As darkness fell over Tracy Island, a storm began to brew. Winds howled, the waves crashed and on occasion the sky lit up as lightning flashed followed by the deep rumble of the thunder. Most people cowered when such a vicious storm as this came calling, but everyone on Tracy Island were used to storms like this. Jodie had made several safety-features for the house and the other area they used regularly by having metal covers rise up out of the ground and cover them over. These in addition had force-fields built into them. It was a similar way with the house only it was just a force-field originating from the the tall tower in the middle of the roof. The rain never worried them, but it was the high winds and lightning that could cause the damage.

Daniel didn't sleep well that night, but it wasn't the thunder and lightning that kept him awake. He was still thinking about Sian and Cassidy and what he could do to help them and Joanne. _This had gone far enough_ , he told himself. _It's time we did something and made them safer and happier_. He quietly climbed out of bed and went over to the window. He slowly pushed one of the curtains back to look outside. He couldn't see much due to the darkness. The only light came from the occasional flash of lighting over the ocean. He almost wanted to head downstairs and try to call the girls, but he knew that it would daytime in England meaning they would be in lessons. He didn't want to accidentally get them into any more trouble by calling their phones. _There must be something we can do_ , he thought. He let the curtain drop back and then looked over at Joanne. Despite her being worried sick for her daughters, she'd managed to fall asleep straight away. She always seemed to no matter what mood she was in. "How do you do it, Jo?" Daniel asked quietly so as not to wake her. But as try as he might, he could not think of a single idea to help Sian and Cassidy. Oh, well, I'll just have to sleep on it, he said to himself as he climbed back into the bed. He lay there for a good ten minutes more before tiredness finally got the better of him and he fell asleep.

All was quiet aboard Thunderbird 5 as well. Kerry was off-duty and thinking of turning in herself. But before she did, she had to make sure that Thunderbird 5's security systems were all in check. This involved speaking to the Artificial Intelligence called EOS. EOS had once been a rogue AI that John Tracy had unwittingly created and it had evolved. After first believing him to be hostile, EOS eventually saw sense thanks to John and became an important part of Thunderbird 5's systems. Since John no longer worked on the space-station and with Kerry having her crew-members to work it, there wasn't much for EOS to do anymore except keep a close guard of the CCTV and other defences.

Kerry sat herself down in the space-station's lounge with her final cup of coffee of the shift. She had an iPad resting on one of the tables. "EOS, you there?" she asked.

A holographic image of a young woman with long black hair appeared from the iPad. This was the face that had been created for EOS to make her more than just a voice. " _Hello, Kerry,_ " she said. " _I'm always here for you. How have things been today?_ "

"Rather busy," said Kerry. "That volcano was certainly a handful but nothing that Daniel and the girls could not handle."

" _Indeed,_ " said EOS. " _I monitored the whole thing. Did you know they only had a three second gap before the volcano was due another explosion?_ "

"Really now?" said Kerry. "How did you figure that one out?"

" _I made a deep scan of the volcano and observed the amount of pressure that was building up inside it,_ " EOS said. " _Luckily that relief tunnel released the pressure just in the nick of time. It would've been, as I believe Dr Hackenbacker would say 'Catastrophic'._ "

Kerry was puzzled. "Why, what would've happened?" she asked.

EOS showed Kerry a holographic map of Ouato and the volcano that she had created. " _There was a large amount of lava that became trapped right down in the base,_ " she said. " _If the Mole had not created that relief tunnel in time, the whole volcano would've blown itself apart. It could've destroyed the entire island and created a tsunami that would have decimated the entire Northern coastline of Hawaii. There was also a 26% chance that a tsunami could have reached all sides of the Pacific Ocean. America and Japan would both have been affected._ "

Kerry was staggered by this revelation. "That's…quite something, EOS," she said. "We really should have you back on active duty like you were before."

" _I am quite happy doing what I do, Kerry,_ " said EOS. " _But if you ever do need any assistance during missions, I will be there for you._ "

Kerry just smiled.

Daniel was still pondering over the subject of Sian and Cassidy early the next morning when he got up. He left Joanne to sleep and went downstairs to get himself a cup of tea. As he walked into the kitchen, he saw that Kyrano was already there, still wearing the same blue and red robe-like coat that he always wore.

"Good morning, Mr Tracy, sir," said Kyrano taking a small bow when he saw Daniel. "A good night's sleep, I trust?"

"Good morning, Kyrano," Daniel replied. "Beg my pardon, but do you ever sleep?"

Kyrano chuckled. "Of course, sir," he said. "On and off throughout the day."

Daniel pondered. In all the years he'd known Kyrano, he couldn't remember a single time that Kyrano was in his room. He was always up and about doing something. He was always up whenever they went to bed, and he always seemed to be up when they got up too. Daniel just couldn't work it. "Well, so long as you don't overdo it," he said. "We both know what happens when you do."

"Oh, don't you worry about that, sir," said Kyrano. "I haven't had one for almost a whole year now."

That was true, Daniel had to admit. Ever since International Rescue had first started out, Kyrano had on occasion suffered several mysterious dizzy spells which resulted in him collapsing on the floor and crying out in pain. It was something that nobody, not even Rosie could understand. They had even brought in other specialist doctors from around the globe to come and look at him on occasion, but even they could find nothing wrong. But as Kyrano had said, he had not had once since the end of 2067 so whatever the cause was must have finally cleared itself up, Daniel thought.

"Well, still, just take it easy," said Daniel giving Kyrano a pat on the shoulder. He then left the kitchen with his mug of tea and headed into the lounge. He saw that the mail plane had already been as there were a pile of letters on his desk. It had come a bit later than usual because of the storm which luckily had now passed. As he looked out of the window, Daniel saw that the sky was still grey and miserable-looking as the light gradually grew lighter.

Daniel looked through the letters. All were addressed to him, except for the one at the very bottom. His eyes narrowed. This one was addressed to Joanne. Then he noticed a printed crest on the envelope. It was the crest of Hounsdown Boarding School - the one that Sian and Cassidy attended. "Oh, for Christ's sake!" Daniel said out loud. "Now what?" He was just about to open the letter when he stopped. _No, this isn't for me to look at first_ , he told himself.

Just then he heard footsteps and voices outside.

"Morning, Jo."

"Morning, Katie."

Daniel saw Katie pass the door. "Morning, Dad," Katie called.

"Morning," Daniel replied. "Jo?"

Joanne stopped. "Yes, sweetie?"

Daniel beckoned her in. "Door," he said.

Puzzled, Joanne walked in and closed the door. "What is it?" she asked. She froze when Daniel held up the letter. "Oh, God, what now?" she asked.

"I hate to think," said Daniel as she took the letter from him. "I was going to open it, but then decided against it."

Joanne opened it and then put it on the table so that they could both read it.

Dear Miss O'Connor

I am writing to you yet again regarding the ongoing issues with your daughters Sian and Cassidy. After writing the letter to you yesterday, I received a visit from Mr Andrew Thompson. He is the father of Eugene Thompson, which you probably have guessed. He came in to issue an official complaint about what happened between his son and your daughter and is demanding that a meeting take place on Friday morning at 11:00 hours. Please get back to me ASAP as this is a very serious matter and must be resolved. I will be speaking to Sian tomorrow once she is out of the infirmary.

Once again, I cannot stress to you how urgent it is that you attend this meeting on Friday as I have Mr Thompson breathing down my neck constantly. Failure to comply could result in Mr Thompson filing a lawsuit against us and yourself. Please get back to me ASAP.

Yours,

Mr D. K. Nightingale

Daniel and Joanne stared at the letter. This was even more ridiculous than the previous letter, they both thought.

"This is absurd!" said Joanne. "Who does this Thompson guy think he is? Has nobody told him that his son is a troublesome bully?"

"Maybe he's one of these wealthy fathers who doesn't care what their children does and then kicks up a fuss whenever something happens with them," Daniel said.

Joanne frowned. "Do you mean…that there could be something more going on here than what's being said to us?" she asked.

Daniel nodded. "Well it's possible," he said. He pointed to a certain section of the letter. "I mean look at this bit here. 'I have Mr Thompson breathing down my neck constantly'. What does that suggest you?"

"That the headmaster's being bribed?" Joanne asked. "Or blackmailed?"

Daniel nodded again. "That could be the reason why his son never seems to get into trouble," he said. "It's probably because his father himself is most likely a bully as well."

Joanne sighed heavily. "What are we going to do?" she asked.

"We're not going, that's for sure," Daniel said. "However…" An idea had struck him. "…I think know the very person to settle the matter for us."

"You do?" said Joanne. "Who would that be?"

"AAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Daniel and Joanne both jumped. Their eyes darted straight at the lounge door. The scream they heard was followed seconds later by a loud CRASH and the sound of metal hitting a stone-tiled floor.

"FATHER!" they heard Karolina's voice cry out.

"Oh, my God! DANIEL!" Zoë's voice cried out from the kitchen.

Then the door burst open revealing a rather alarmed Wizzy. "Dad, come quick!" she cried.

Daniel jumped up from the desk and ran after Wizzy with Joanne behind him. They entered the kitchen to find Katie, Laura, Karolina and Beth gathered around Kyrano who was lying on the floor. His arms and legs were twitching very fast. His eyes were shut tight and he was crying out pain.

"Kyrano!" Daniel said pushing past the others. "What is it? Kyrano?!"

But the voice that Kyrano was hearing right now was not Daniel's. This voice was different. It was a deep, sinister voice that was echoing through his head. Everything in Kyrano's mind went black. Then he felt a sudden blast of mysterious energy and two glowing yellow eyes seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"Kyrano!" the sinister voice thundered. "KYRANO!"


	3. Space, Supplies & School

CONCEALED deep in the jungle of Malaysia was a vast stone temple. On the outside, it was a stunning piece of architecture. Inside too it was all very well decorated with massive bronze and stone statues of mysterious forgotten gods and demons. It all seemed very innocent, but the temple held a sinister secret, for it was the secret hideout of the planet's most dangerous and elusive criminal - a man known simply as The Hood!

The Hood's real name was Trangh Belargant, and he was the half-brother of Kyrano, but it was a secret that Kyrano had never told the Tracy family. In fact, even Karolina was not aware of what her uncle really was. Neither of them had heard anything from him since moving to Tracy Island before International Rescue was even set-up. Kyrano however did often hear from his brother, but not in a nice way. The Hood had some strange hypnotic and telepathic influence over his brother and was not afraid to use it to cause him grief and pain. It was through this that The Hood had first learned of International Rescue and ever since had tried numerous ways to try and learn the secrets of the great Thunderbird crafts. But in every attempt he had been thwarted.

Now, after an absence of many months, The Hood had at last decided to once again make contact with Kyrano via a large bronze statue which stood in the temple's Great Hall. "Kyrano, my half-brother," The Hood began. "It had been so long since we last communicated. Why I'd almost forgotten you even existed. Now, what are the current projects of International Rescue?" There was silence in the hallway. "Do not pretend I'm not in your head, Kyrano," The Hood continued. "You may be far away from where I am, but you cannot escape from the power I have. Kyrano? KYRANO!"

In the kitchen on Tracy Island, Kyrano have been carrying an empty kettle towards the sinking ready for refilling with water. Zoë was beginning to cook the bacon and prepare the eggs for scrambling whilst Laura, Katie, Beth, Wizzy and Karolina were all at the big table eating cereal. Everything was normal or so it seemed to the girls. But Kyrano was starting to feel queer. It was a feeling that he and Daniel had discussed that very morning in fact, but Kyrano had not had an attack of any kind for almost a whole year so most of them had even forgotten about it. But that all came to an abrupt end.

Kyrano suddenly felt a terrifying sharp pain hit his head which then spread like wildfire throughout his entire body. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no," he cried. "AAGH…AGGH…AAAA…AAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The girls looked round in horror as Kyrano collapsed onto the floor. He lost his grip on the kettle which fell to the floor with a loud CRASH.

"Oh, my God!" exclaimed the four Tracy sisters at the same time.

"FATHER!" cried Karolina rushing over to him.

"DANIEL!" Zoë shouted.

Wizzy sprinted out of the kitchen and over to the lounge. She threw open the door to see Daniel at his desk with Joanne. They'd both heard the cries and shouts and they were looking concerned. "Dad, come quick!" Wizzy cried.

Daniel and Joanne hurried back to the kitchen with Wizzy to find the others gathered around Kyrano. He was shaking, arms and legs were twitching whenever they were touched. His eyes were shut tight and he was crying out in pain.

"Kyrano!" Daniel said pushing past the others. "What is it? Kyrano?!"

The Hood was wondering the same question. "What is the matter with you, Kyrano?" he asked. "Why aren't you speaking?"

"No!" Kyrano wailed. "No!"

It was now that The Hood's terrifying hypnotic influence suddenly took effect. His eyes turned a sinister yellow colour as the statue of Kyrano went from bronze to a blood-like red colour. This was just a trick of the light but it looked as ghastly as The Hood's eyes. Kyrano could not see The Hood, but in the blackness that he felt around inside his head, the sinister eyes seemed to appear out of nowhere and stare unblinking at Kyrano.

"DO NOT IGNORE ME, KYRANO! The Hood thundered. "WHAT IS INTERNATIONAL RESCUE DOING NEXT?!"

This was rather a pointless question seeing as none of the International Rescue vehicles were currently out on call. Also, Kyrano didn't usually know what projects the Tracy's or Jodie had in the planning so he found that he could not answer.

The Hood got more impatient by the second and increased the level of his power making poor Kyrano scream louder which was starting to freak the others out. They'd never known him be like this before.

Rosie, Jodie, Adrienne and Leanna came running into the kitchen. They'd all heard Kyrano screaming and had run down to see what was happening.

"Out of the way, let me through!" barked Rosie pushing Beth and Laura out of the way so she could get to Kyrano. "Kyrano, easy, easy, calm down!"

"NOOOOOOOOO!" Kyrano screamed. "I CAN'T! I CAN'T!"

To the International Rescue team, it sounded as though Kyrano was talking to them. But in fact, he was talking back at The Hood. The Hood angrily increased his power yet again causing Kyrano to scream so loudly that the some of girls had to cover their ears.

"KYRANO, CUT THAT OUT!" Daniel shouted.

Beth and Wizzy then ran back in. Rosie had sent them to fetch her medical kit. She quickly rummaged inside for a syringe in which she placed a small tranquiliser capsule.

"Hold him down," Rosie instructed. Daniel pinned down Kyrano's legs. Laura took hold of Kyrano's right arm whilst Karolina did the same with the left. Rosie then took hold of Kyrano's head and injected him in the neck. Kyrano cried out yet again, and this time The Hood let out a cry as well. The injection had somehow managed to break the connection between them. The Hood fell to his knees and whilst Kyrano's heavy breathing began to ease. He stopped crying out and calmed down until he'd fallen asleep.

The Tracy's, Jodie, Rosie, Joanne, Karolina and Leanna looked down at Kyrano in complete silence. They then began to look at each other. All were completely shocked and spooked by what they had just seen.

Leanna was the most freaked out. She'd never seen this happen before. In fact, Daniel was the only one who'd ever witnessed Kyrano suffer one of these attacks. The others had often heard his cries but this was the first time any of them had witnessed it.

"Okay…" Adrienne said once she'd found her voice. "What…the hell…just happened?"

Nobody replied. Nobody knew.

The Hood rubbed his head as he got to his feet. His eyes were back to normal. He looked up at the statue of Kyrano. It had returned to its bronze colour. His head was pounding like he'd just run into a brick wall.

"Boss?"

The Hood looked back to see his two loyal henchmen approaching - a woman known only as Transom and a big dark-skinned muscular man who went by the name of Mullion.

"Are you okay, boss?" Transom asked.

The Hood grimaced and looked back at Kyrano's statue. "Never before have I failed to get what I want from my brother," he said. "Yet somehow, he was able to block me out. Well…it will not happen again, Kyrano. You cannot escape me forever!"

He turned, pushed past Mullion and Transom and stormed out of the Great Hall.

Kyrano had been moved from the floor of the kitchen into a bed in the mansion's Medical Bay so that Rosie could give him a thorough examination. Karolina and Daniel watched from behind a glass observation window. Karolina had been crying. "I don't get it, Mr Tracy," she was saying. "My father's not had one of these attacks for so long. Why has it suddenly come back?"

"If I could answer that, Karolina, I would," Daniel said. "We've been through this so many times, and yet the result is always the same."

"We learn nothing," said Karolina. She sniffed again and laid her head on Daniel's shoulder. He put his arm her for comfort.

Rosie then came out having finished her examination.

"What's the verdict?" Daniel asked.

Rosie sighed. "Nothing," she said. "I checked his heartbeat, his breathing, his eyes, I've taken a blood sample and even given him an MRI scan. But there's absolutely nothing wrong with him."

"But, Rosie, there has to be!" protested Karolina. "Why else would he be like this? It makes no sense."

Rosie sighed again. "It's true," she agreed. "It doesn't make any sense. I'm sorry." She then walked off to wash her hands leaving Karolina and Daniel to just exchanged concerned glances.

Daniel returned to the lounge where the others were waiting.

"Anything?" Laura asked.

Daniel shook his head. "Nope, same as ever," he replied. "Rosie's checked him all over and has found nothing."

"How long has it been?" asked Beth. "I don't even remember when he last had one."

"Was around this time last year from what I recall," said Katie.

Leanna on the other hand wanted answers. "This is the first I've ever seen of this," she said. "How long has he been having these?"

"Ironically, ever since just before International Rescue first started operation," Daniel said. "He said he had had them before but that was the first time we ever were aware of it."

"Complete mystery," said Adrienne. "Whatever it is, it's nothing to do with a family thing. I don't ever recall Karolina having one."

They all fell silent and thought about Kyrano.

"It's so close to Christmas," Laura said sadly. "This is meant to be such a jolly time of year."

"Indeed," agreed Beth. "All the schools will be breaking up for the…"

"DAMN IT!" Daniel banged his fist on the desk making everyone jump. "Buffoon I am! I'd forgotten all about that!"

The girls looked at each other. "Forgotten what?" asked Wizzy.

"We have a couple of people who need rescuing from school," said Daniel tapping some buttons on his computer keypad.

Joanne realised what he meant at once but the others remained confused.

Daniel then brought up a hologram image of what he called the 'Wheel of Communication'. It had six coloured hologram buttons which allowed whoever was sitting at the desk to get in contact with any of the main Thunderbird ships. In clockwise order was a blue circle with the shape of Thunderbird 1 in it, next there was a green circle with the shape of Thunderbird 2, then a red circle with Thunderbird 3 followed by a yellow circle for Thunderbird 4 with an orange one for Thunderbird 5 and finally a pink one for FAB1 - the Rolls-Royce that Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward owned. Daniel pressed the button for FAB1 sending out a signal to England via Thunderbird 5.

On a quiet estate outside the village of Foxleyheath in Gloucestershire, Lady Penelope resided in a vast mansion of her own. It was about the same size as the one on Tracy Island but was a lot more old-fashioned than theirs. Whereas it was daytime over Tracy Island, it was getting late in England and Lady Penelope was about to get herself ready for bed. She'd just finished in her en-suite bathroom when she heard a beeping noise coming from her bedside table. She hurried out in her night-gown hastily drying her face with a towel. She sat down on the bed and pressed a button on the alarm clock. A hologram image of Daniel emerged from the clock whilst at the same time a hologram image of Penelope appeared from her portrait in the mansion lounge.

"International Rescue - Lady Penelope speaking."

"Hello, Penny."

"Daniel, what a surprise," Penelope said. "How are you and everyone else?"

"Bit here and there to be honest, Penny," Daniel said. "I'm afraid Kyrano's just had one of his attacks."

Penelope was just as surprised to hear this as the others had been when it happened. "Really?" she said. "I thought those had stopped?"

"So did we all," said Daniel. "Today's been the first in almost a year. But anyway, that's not the reason for me calling. I need your help with something."

"I was just about to get into bed, but for you, Daniel, I'll always help," Penelope said.

"Well actually this needs to be done during the day tomorrow where you are," Daniel said. "Have you heard of Hounsdown Boarding School near Southampton?"

Penelope thought hard for a moment. "I do believe I have," she said. "Isn't that the one that Sian and Cassidy attend?"

"Yes, and things aren't good there, I'm afraid," Daniel said grimly. "There's this bully there who keeps picking on Cassidy. From what we can gather from letters and video calls we've had with them, this kid is both bullying her verbally and physically. And now we've had news that Sian apparently confronted him, which has resulted in her being beaten up as a result of her hitting him."

"Good for her," Beth remarked quietly.

"Oh, Gosh!" Penelope said. "Is Sian hurt?"

"The headmaster's letter said she's in the infirmary," Daniel said. "She's not critically injured. But it's what's next is what has angered me and Jo. The headmaster is planning to give her an official warning for her actions instead of the bully. And from we can tell, this bully hasn't even been reprimanded for his bullying of Cassidy and the other kids. Worse still, he's asking for Jo to come visit the school on Friday to attend a meeting with the boy's father who is apparently threatening a lawsuit."

Penelope frowned. "I've never heard such rubbish in my life!" she said. "Sian and Cassidy are lovely, gentle people. I get a feeling there's more to this than what's being let on."

"Agreed," said Daniel. "So, do you think you could go down to the school tomorrow, find out what you can from the headmaster and then bring Sian and Cassidy home?"

"I can do, yes," Penelope said. "But tomorrow is Thursday."

"Yes, I know that, Penny," said Daniel. "But I am sick and tired of the way they're being treated. That is why I want them out of that school and back here where they'll be safe."

Penelope completely understood Daniel and Joanne's feelings. "Consider it done," she said. "Parker and I will head down to the school first thing in the morning."

Joanne stepped forwards so that Penelope could see her. "Thank you, Penelope," she said. "That means a lot to me as it will to them."

Penelope smiled. "You're most welcome, Joanne," she replied. "Good night."

"Night," said Daniel and Joanne. Then with a beep, the holograms switched off.

Daniel and Joanne looked at each and smiled. They both knew now that Sian and Cassidy would be in safe hands.

Katie broke the silence. She asked the question that was on all of their minds. "Would we be correct in guessing this is why the door was closed yesterday and this morning?"

Joanne nodded. "Yes, Katie," she said.

There was then another beeping noise. Everyone looked round at the Wall of Portraits to see the eyes on Kerry's picture were flashing.

"Go ahead, Kerry," said Daniel.

Kerry's hologram now appeared. "Morning everyone," she said. "I was just calling to confirm that our supplies will be delivered as and when previously discussed?"

"Supplies?" Daniel asked. Then he remembered. "Oh, yes, of course, Kerry. Thunderbird 3 to deliver them at noon."

"That's perfect," smiled Kerry. "You'll be pleased to know everything is quiet for the moment."

"Let's hope it stays that way," Daniel said. "Talk to you later, Kerry."

"Sure. Thunderbird 5 out," Kerry said and signed off.

Daniel then turned to Jodie, Beth and Adrienne. "What's the status of the supplies?"

"All being loaded as we speak, Mr Tracy," Jodie said. "First thing I started this morning."

Daniel nodded. "Very good," he said. "Beth, Adie, be ready for launch at 11:30 hours."

"F-A-B, Dad," the two sisters answered.

Ever since man had returned to the Moon, space travel had become a lot more evolved and common. There were now regular shuttles between Earth and the Moon delivering supplies to the various Lunar Bases dotted around the surface. There were seven sites in total where bases were located, but only six of them were in operation. Lunars-1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 were all operational whilst work was underway on Lunar-8. However, there was one site where nobody went anymore - the site of Lunar-4. Throughout 2068 a series of terrible events had occurred at the base resulting in its destruction and the tragic deaths of several people. The cause for all this the discovery of a fire-breathing Rock Snake from Mars which had been accidentally destroyed and a fragment brought back to the Moon. It had been stored in Lunar-4 and grown into another snake without anyone realising. It then went on to destroy the base from within. The snake was eventually destroyed with the help of International Rescue only for it to become several more snakes a few months later. Jodie eventually managed to develop a new serum that could dissolve the rocks and prevent the snakes from reproducing. All the same, the events of Lunar-4 were not pleasant ones for International Rescue or the Lunar personnel.

Lunar-1 was the main control centre for the bases. It was run by Commander Christine Blake (everyone called her Kris). She was an old friend of Daniel's and was technically also a member of International Rescue for she monitored everything that happened on the Moon and in deep space. This was so that Thunderbird 5 could mostly monitor the airwaves of the Earth.

Kris was getting ready for her shift. Her cats Jupiter and Aurora plus the recently-born kitten Cosmos were playing around her boots. "Come on now, you can't get in there," Kris laughed as she lifted Cosmos out of one of the boots. She plonked him down on the bed whilst she put the boots on. Aurora and Jupiter brushed themselves against the black leather and purred loudly. It seemed soft to them. Cosmos tried to sit on Kris's lap but she lifted him off quickly. "No, no, you," she said. "No hair on my uniform, thank you." She then got up and headed for the door of her room. "Behave yourselves now," she said as she left.

Kris entered the control room where her colleagues were working at their stations. As she reached her desk in her office, her second-in-command Courtney Mythen approached and knocked on the door. "Morning, Commander," she said as she entered. "Latest reports from the other stations, for you."

"Thanks, Courtney," Kris replied. She wasn't formal with people's names like some commanders. "Is the supply freighter on its way?"

"Yes, Commander," Courtney replied. "It passed the halfway point about an hour ago."

Kris thought for a moment. "You know, I haven't heard that mentioned for quite a few months now," she remarked. "Not since we had the trouble with those space-pirates."

"Careful, Commander," warned Courtney. "Don't speak too soon."

Kris raised an eyebrow, but smiled for she knew Courtney was only joking. "Thanks, Courtney. That'll be all for now," she said.

Courtney clicked her heels, nodded and then out of Kris's office.

Supply Freighter 17 was making its way towards the Moon from the Earth. Engines had advanced a lot in the 21st Century. When journeys to the Moon in the 20th Century could take a few days, now it could be done in around twelve hours. However, no craft that the Space Agencies had could reach the Moon in under thirty minutes which was what Thunderbird 3 or the World Space Patrol ships could do.

Inside the cockpit of freighter were its two pilots - Captain Richard Craig and co-pilot Lieutenant Stephen Pike. They were both very experienced pilots who'd done this journey several times. It was a quiet and easy job, but both men were craving a little more excitement.

"Ah, just another day on the job," Pike remarked.

"Yes," agreed Craig. "Still the Moon looks as beautiful as ever."

"You know, I been thinking about a transfer to one of the other stations," Pike went on. "The one with those gorgeous Angel pilots."

"Ah, yes, those beauties!" said Craig. "I don't know if you've ever seen them in action, Steve, but they are mighty fine flyers. And their planes ain't bad-looking either. I sure wouldn't like to be the fool who gets on the wrong end of them!"

Unbeknownst to the two pilots, a strange unauthorised spacecraft was travelling through the same area as them. It followed the SF-17 at a distance like a fox stalking a rabbit. It was piloted by two crooked brothers - Carl and Terry Briggs. They were the younger brothers of Slim and Joe Briggs who had been part of the pirate attacks on supply shuttles earlier in the year. But with their brothers arrested and imprisoned in Lunar-2, they felt it was their duty to continue their work with their ship _Vulcan_.

Carl cackled delightedly. "There she is, Terry. The SF-17. What a heap of junk!"

"Yeah, Carl!" giggled Terry. "She's nothing compared to our beautiful _Vulcan_."

This was proof of just how dumb Terry was, for the _Vulcan_ was not a good-looking ship at all. It could almost be described as a large flying dustbin. It was old, rusty and unreliable at times. But it was good enough for the brothers and they wouldn't have a word said against it.

"So when do we do it?" Terry asked.

"Not yet," Carl replied. "We need to get in a little closer. We're way beyond the quick response times of the Falcon interceptors and there are no Space Patrol ships anywhere near us. There's nothing that can stop us!"

Terry giggled again. "Yeah, too right," he agreed.

Beth and Adrienne had completed all that they needed to do before their trip to Thunderbird 5. They had made sure that all the supplies needed for the satellite had been loaded into the cargo-bay aboard Thunderbird 3 before having one last quick meeting with Daniel.

"Everything's stored, secured and ready to go, Dad," Beth said.

"Excellent," said Daniel. He glanced at the clock. "It's almost time," he said. "You'd best get ready."

"F-A-B," the girls said. They went and sat in two of the leather seats. At the touch of a button the seats began to lower on an elevator through the floor. Once they were gone, a replacement floorboard rose up with two spare seats on them so that nobody would fall through the hole in the floor. The elevator took the girls down to a tunnel below the mansion and onto a trolley which went sideways for a short distance. It then stopped on a turntable and was turned so they'd face forwards. The seats then split up sending them both through separate tunnels. It was passing through these that they'd stand up and have their uniforms put on before sitting back down and being spun 180 degrees to face backwards. Leaving the changing tunnels, they regrouped and stopped on the end of a large yellow hydraulic arm which lifted up to the entrance of Thunderbird 3 which was located in a colossal round launch silo next to where Thunderbird 1 stood on its platform. Once the arm was in position, the rollers under the chairs moved the girls through the hatch and into the cockpit of Thunderbird 3. The tracks changed their positions from level to facing upwards in the giant red rocket's direction of facing. With the hatch sealed and the girls at the control panel, the big revolving blast shield sealed them off from the rest of the silo to protect everything. They were now ready to go.

5…4…3…2…1!

The three main boosters of Thunderbird 3 ignited and the colossal rocket rose through the silo before passing through the Roundhouse Library which concealed it and climbing high into the sky leaving a long white trail of smoke in its wake.

"Thunderbird 3 is go!" announced Beth as the rocket accelerated towards space.

It wasn't long before Thunderbird 3 left the Earth's atmosphere and set its course for Thunderbird 5.

"Thunderbird 5 from Thunderbird 3," Beth said into the radio. "We're in orbit and en-route to you. Our ETA is about fifteen minutes."

"F-A-B, Thunderbird 3," Kaylee's voice answered. "Be good to see you again, Beth."

"You too, Kaylee," said Beth. "Kerry not there?"

"She's just having coffee," Kaylee said. "She'll be back by the time you get here."

Beth and Adrienne both grinned.

"We shall probably be needing one ourselves once we've unloaded your supplies," Adrienne said.

"Help yourself when you do," said Kaylee. "Seeing as you're bringing fresh."

Thunderbird 3 continued on its route around the Earth towards where Thunderbird 5 was orbiting above China. As they approached they began to line their craft up with the docking bay located in the rear of the satellite. It was always a delicate maneuver but never had Beth or Adrienne messed it up. And they weren't going to today. With eagle-eyed coordination, Beth eased Thunderbird 3 closer to the docking bay using a red circle tunnel on her monitor screen for guidance and making sure that the cross (which represented the point of the nose-cone) was always in the middle. Slowly but surely, the nose of Thunderbird 3 moved into the docking bay and then stopped with a clunk as the clamps fastened it into place. The process was completed.

Kerry went along the boarding tube to the airlock connection with Thunderbird 3. With her was the fourth member of Thunderbird 5's crew - Kelly Smith. The doors opened to reveal Adrienne and Beth. Kerry greeted her two nieces warmly. However, she did not like being called Aunt Kerry so they simply called her by her name.

"So good to see you again," Kerry said.

"Good to be back," said Adrienne. "I guess everything is still quiet?"

"Yes," Kerry said. "Worryingly quiet I fear."

"We've been monitoring that volcano and your work there seems to have done the trick," said Kelly. "There's been the odd tremor detected but no more ash or lava has come out."

"That's a relief," said Beth. "Shall we begin?"

"Yes, indeed," said Kerry.

The four set to work, collecting the crates and boxes of supplies from Thunderbird 3's cargo bay and transferring them on trolleys to the stores of Thunderbird 5. It was hard work and they had to make several trips as they only had two trolleys. But overtime they had perfected a routine where they could get it done as quickly as possible. Adrienne and Kelly pushed the trolleys whilst Beth was the loader aboard Thunderbird 3 and Kerry was the unloader in Thunderbird 5. Whenever a trolley arrived in the cargo bay, Beth would load the boxes onto it and then Adrienne or Kelly would push the trolley to the stores passing the other roughly halfway. When they reached the stores, Kerry would then unload the boxes so that they could go back for more. Whilst all this was happening, Kaylee and Katrina continued their monitor duty. Both were feeling bored due to it being so quiet.

Thirty minutes after Thunderbird 3 had docked with Thunderbird 5, Daniel called to see how things were going. "Everything okay up there?" he asked.

"Everything's going perfectly, Daniel," Kerry answered via her wrist communicator. "Kelly's just gone for another load. Adrienne will be here soon. I think we'll be done after Kelly gets back. Beth says there's just three more boxes left."

"That's good to hear," said Daniel. "I trust they've not left anything behind?"

Kerry quickly looked at the checklist. "Nope, everything appears to be here," she said. "Food - check. Computer parts - check. Light Bulbs - check."

Daniel burst out laughing. "You got some weighing scales?" he asked.

Kerry looked at his hologram suspiciously. "No…" she said raising an eyebrow.

Daniel then produced two Light Bulbs and put the smaller one on a pair of scales on his desk. "Light Bulb," he said and then put the bigger one causing the scales to tip. "Heavy Bulb."

Kerry groaned. "Funny, very funny," she said as Daniel howled with laughter again. She then heard the sound of a trolley approaching. "Adie's just coming," she said. "Speak later." She signed off just as Adrienne walked in.

"Did I just hear Dad laughing?" Adrienne asked.

"Yeah - you don't want to know what he said though," Kerry said.

Adrienne rolled her eyes. "No doubt he was making some bad joke again," she remarked.

As Kerry unloaded the boxes from the trolley, Adrienne looked out of the window at the Moon. "Sure is a beautiful sight," she remarked.

But at that very moment, trouble was about to happen. The SF-17 was still heading on its course with the crew still oblivious to the danger that was approaching them from behind. The _Vulcan_ was slowly closing the gap between the two and the Briggs brothers were preparing to make their move.

"We're in range," Carl said. "Do you have a lock-on, Terry?"

"Yes, Carl, weapons are locked," Terry replied. "Ready with disabling missile."

"Good," said Carl. "Fire!"

A small missile shot out from the forward cannon on the nose of the _Vulcan_ and struck the engines of the SF-17. There was a powerful explosion which instantly disabled the engines, but it wasn't powerful enough to penetrate the hull. They didn't want to risk any damage that might destroy the freighter before they had the chance to get what they were after.

Captain Craig and Lieutenant Pike were almost thrown out of their seats due to the violent shudder that the explosion caused.

"What the dickens was that?!" demanded Craig.

Alarms started ringing. "Engine failure!" Pike said. "I'll go back and check." He got up and hurried out of the cockpit.

Craig immediately got onto the radio to alert Earth and the Moon bases. "Emergency red! Emergency red! This is Space-Freight 17 calling. Explosion in aft of vessel. Engines are out. Request immediate assistance! Over!"

The distress call was immediately detected by Lunar-1. Courtney ran to alert Kris. "Commander, we've got trouble," she said.

Kris ran into the main control room. "What's going on?" she asked.

Mark Davis, one of the radio operators answered the question. "It's Space-Freighter 17, Commander," he said. "They've reported an explosion in their aft section and the engines are out."

Kris frowned. "Let me speak to them," she said. Davis handed Kris his headphones and microphone. "SF-17 this is Commander Blake of Lunar-1," Kris said. "Do you read me?"

"Reading you, Lunar-1," Craig replied.

"What's your status, Captain?" asked Kris.

"Engines are dead. We're stranded," Craig said. "We need assistance urgently."

"Roger, I'll send Space-Tugs and Falcons out to your position," Kris said. "Sit tight, Captain. Lunar-1 out."

"What else does she expect us to do?" asked Craig.

Aboard Thunderbird 5, Beth had joined the others after Kelly had brought the last of the supplies to the stores.

"Well, that's it for another month," Kerry said. "Thank you both."

"You're welcome," Beth said. "Could we have a coffee now?"

"But of course," smiled Kerry. "Allow me."

But no sooner had they all left the stores when the alarm began sounding. Katrina's voice then came over the tannoy. "Emergency call incoming. I repeat - emergency call incoming."

Kerry sprinted off towards the control room followed by Kelly, Adrienne and Beth. They all wanted to know what the situation was.

"I hope this is nothing major," Adrienne called to Kerry. "Otherwise the others will be short-handed."

They then reached the control room and entered through the automatic double-doors.

"What have we got, girls?" Kerry asked.

"Space freighter reports an explosion in after section," Katrina said. "Engines are out."

"Space freighter did you say?" asked Kerry. "Where abouts?"

"It's on the Lunar-route," Katrina said. "Just over the halfway point."

A small blip appeared on the computer screen showing the location of the SF-17.

"Are we in contact?" Kerry asked Kaylee.

"Negative," Kaylee replied. "Maybe the radio's out as well."

"We'll go out there and take a look," said Beth.

Kerry nodded. "I'll inform your father," she said. "Keep in touch."

Beth and Adrienne hurried back to Thunderbird 3.

"Guess we'll have to wait for that coffee," Adrienne said.

"Let's hope this is a quick and simple one then we can return for it," agreed Beth.

Reaching the cockpit of Thunderbird 3, they took their positions at the controls and closed the airlock. They then released the docking clamps and reversed clear of Thunderbird 5 before turning to face the direction of the Moon.

"Disengage complete," Beth said over the radio. "Firing main boosters in three…two…one!"

Kerry, Kaylee, Katrina and Kelly watched out the big window as Thunderbird 3 rocketed away towards the Moon.

Kelly then noticed that there was a concerned look on Kerry's face. "Are you okay, Kerry?" she asked.

"I'm not sure, Kelly," Kerry replied. "I've got this strange feeling. And I really hope that I'm wrong. Katrina, I don't suppose there any other ships in that area, are there?"

Katrina checked the radar scope. "Yes, there's one just pulling up beside it," she said. "Looks like help has arrived after all."

But Kerry did not look convinced. "I'm not so sure that it has," she said in a low voice. She then spoke into the radio on Katrina's desk. "Thunderbird 3, we've detected another ship close to the freighter. Approach with extreme caution. I repeat - _extreme_ caution."

"F-A-B," said Beth. She and Adrienne then exchanged a worried look.

The _Vulcan_ was now positioning itself alongside the SF-17. Craig was alerted by the light from the retros as the ship came to a halt alongside. "Oh, no!" he said, realising what this meant. "Steve, where are you?"

"I'm in the control room, Captain," Pike replied. "No damage inside. It must be on the outside. I'll get my gear and take a look."

"No!" Craig cried. "Get back to the cockpit! There's another ship outside!"

Pike raced back to the cockpit. When he got there, he saw the _Vulcan_ now as well and became just as concerned.

Craig immediately got onto the radio. "Lunar-1, this is SF-17. Emergency! We've been attacked!"

Everyone on the control room of Lunar-1 froze when they heard this.

Kris grabbed the radio mike again. "SF-17, what do you see?" asked Kris. "Who's attacking you?"

"The explosion was the attack," Craig said. "There's a large ship just stopped next to us. It's got the name _Vulcan_ on the side of it."

" _Vulcan_?" Kris asked. The name didn't sound familiar. "Any other markings?"

"Yes," said Craig. "Looks like 'Briggs Salvage Company Ltd'."

Kris's blood ran cold. "Courtney, contact Lunar-2. I want confirmation that the Briggs brothers are still there!"

"But they are still there," Courtney replied. "I was there this morning and saw them."

Kris frowned. "Gregson!" she called out to another man across the control room. "Find out if they have any other brothers."

"Yes, ma'am," Gregson called back.

Kris spoke into the radio again. "Captain, whatever you do, do NOT let them aboard your ship. Keep it under lock-down and do not leave the cockpit. They could be armed."

"Roger, will do," said Craig. "How long until help arrives?"

"The Tugs and Interceptors have launched and are on their way to you now," Kris said. "I'll make sure the Interceptors get to you ASAP and chase that ship off. Just sit tight."

"Okay, we will," said Craig.

Aboard the _Vulcan_ , Carl and Terry were getting ready. They'd put on their space-helmets and got all of the equipment that they would need.

"You all set, Terry?" asked Carl.

"All set, Carl," said Terry. "Let's do this."

The outer door of the _Vulcan's_ starboard airlock opened and the two men exited using thruster-packs. Craig and Pike spotted them and decided to close the shutters of the cockpit windows. They still had power even though the engines were out. They could still observe their attackers via cameras located on the outside of their ship. They just hoped that help would arrive before they were able to gain access.

Thunderbird 3 was approaching the position of the distress call. They could just make out the two silhouettes of the spaceships against the Moon.

"Thunderbird 5 from Thunderbird 3. We have a visual on the freighter," Beth reported. "We can also confirm that there is a second ship. But it's definitely not a design that I recognise."

"Just as I thought, Thunderbird 3," Kerry answered over the radio. "We intercepted a second call from the freighter to Lunar-1. Its a ship belonging to the Briggs Salvage Company. It would seem there's more than the two we helped put away earlier in the year. Don't let them see you. It wouldn't surprise me if they decide to avenge their imprisoned siblings if they do."

"Understood," Beth said. "We'll go into stealth-mode and hide round the opposite side of the freighter whilst we decide what to do."

Stealth-mode meant a lower amount of power for Thunderbird 3's engines. No flame was produced and it could crawl along at a snail's pace as it approached the two stationary spaceships. They were not spotted by Carl or Terry. They were busy floating outside the SF-17's airlock.

"They must know we're here, Carl," Terry said. "They've closed the shutters on the cockpit windows."

"So what?" asked Carl. "We got weapons, dummy. There's nothing they can do to stop us. And even if they've called for help, it'll be ages before any ship can get here."

Carl could not have been more wrong however for Thunderbird 3 had come to a stop on the opposite side of the freighter.

"Scans show two life-signs by the airlock," Adrienne said. "How are we going to do this?"

Beth pondered the problem. "Well they're not inside yet which is good," she said. "If we could distract them somehow and lure them away, we could use Thunderbird 3's grappling arms to attach onto the freighter and then push it towards the Moon."

"I heard Commander Blake say they're sending Interceptors and Space-Tugs out," Kerry said over the radio. "I'll get in touch and tell her what you're planning."

"Okay, Kerry, thanks," said Beth. "However, still leaves us the problem of how do we get those two to leave the freighter."

Adrienne then had an idea. "I might have a plan," she said. "But I'll have to go EVA in order to try it."

"EVA?" repeated Kerry. "Adie, if they see you they might attack you."

"They'd have to catch me first," Adrienne replied. "Besides, they've only got thruster-packs. Whereas my little spaceboard could leave them for spacedust."

Kerry wasn't very keen on the idea, but she reluctantly agreed. "Very well, Adie," she said. "But for God's sake, be careful!"

"I will," Adrienne promised. She quickly unfastened the safety-bars from her seat and went over to the equipment cupboard where they kept their spaceboards. These were like surfboards only they had rocket-motors at the backs. Both put their helmets on as Beth needed to remove the oxygen from the cockpit before opening the hatch. "I'm ready," Adrienne said.

"Good luck," Beth said. "I'll move the ship back and get ready to attach the grappling arms."

The hatch opened and Adrienne exited Thunderbird 3 on her spaceboard. She carefully headed round to the back of the SF-17 and looked at the damage caused by the missile. "Gosh - that's going to take some fixing," she remarked out loud to herself. She then stopped at the back-left-corner of the ship and slowly peered around. She could see that Terry was using a cutting torch to try and gain access to the airlock.

"Come on, Terry, hurry it up!" said Carl impatiently. "The sooner we get this done, the better."

"I'm going as fast as I can, Carl," Terry answered. "This metal tough to cut through though."

Adrienne watched them closely. She then glanced back to see Thunderbird 3 slowly reversing past her. _I have to lure them away_ , she said to herself. Then she had an idea. She moved down and underneath the SF-17 before coming up underneath behind the two brothers. She reached over and flicked a switch on Carl's pack. A sudden jet of air pushed him upwards.

"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA?!" Carl cried out in alarm as he flew uncontrollably away from the ships. "TERRRRRRRRRRRRRRYYYYY!"

Terry spun round in horror. "CARL!" he cried. "COME BACK!"

Adrienne had ducked out of the way so that Terry wouldn't see her. As she hoped, Terry hurried back to the _Vulcan_. He knew there was no way he'd be able to catch his elder brother at the speed he was going. His only chance to rescue him was to use their ship.

"Hold on, Carl!" Terry cried out in panic. "I'm coming to get you!" He fired the main boosters of the _Vulcan_ and set off in pursuit of his brother.

Adrienne grinned delightedly as she returned to Thunderbird 3.

"Not bad, sis, not bad," said Beth once her sister was back aboard. "I'm impressed."

"Thanks," said Adrienne. "Now let's get these guys to safety."

Beth began to move Thunderbird 3 towards the SF-17. It was lucky for that its tail and wings were just in the right positions for them to attach the grappling arms. She also felt it was time that they informed the crew of their presence. "Space-Freighter 17, this is International Rescue. Are you receiving?"

Craig and Pike were very relieved to hear Beth's voice.

"International Rescue!" Craig exclaimed. "Thank God. Where are you?"

"Right behind you," Beth said. "We're going to attach our grappling arms and push you to safety."

"That's fantastic, thank you!" said Craig. "I don't know what happened but those pirates have run off it seems."

"I tampered with one of their thruster-packs and sent him flying," Adrienne said. "Now his brother's gone to rescue him whilst we get you to safety."

Craig and Pike grinned delightedly. They now felt that it was safe to open the cockpit window shutters again now that their attackers were currently occupied.

"Deploying grappling arms," said Beth pressing a button on the control panel. The three long arms that went from Thunderbird 3's main body to the boosters moved out to face forwards. Grabs opened out and locked onto the tail-fin and wings of the SF-17. "Grapplers locked," Beth said. "SF-17. Hang on tight. Here we go."

The main boosters of Thunderbird 3 fired and the great red rocket began to push the freighter forwards towards the Moon.

Kris had been in touch with Kerry and was aware of Thunderbird 3's presence. She and her team had noticed that the SF-17 was moving again. Of course she knew the reason why, but everyone else was puzzled.

"They're on the move again," said Davis. "How are they managing that?"

"They're being pushed, Davis," Kris answered. "You forget that International Rescue's craft cannot be tracked in any way." She picked up the radio mike once more. "Lunar-1 to Thunderbird 3," she said. "I trust you've been able to distract the pirates?"

"Sent one into space and the other has gone to rescue him," Beth answered. "However, I get the feeling that once he's retrieved his brother that they'll come after us. How soon before your ships get here?"

"The Interceptors are travelling ahead of the tugs," Kris said. "They should be with you in just under ten minutes."

"Roger," said Beth. "Let's hope that's enough time."

At that very moment, Terry was closing the gap between Carl and the _Vulcan_. Carl was still spinning around due to the thrust from his pack.

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR, TERRY?!" Carl shouted. "GRAPPLE ME!"

"I've almost got you, Carl," Terry replied. He used the computer to lock onto Carl and fired a grapple which grabbed hold of Carl's leg. Terry used the retros to bring the _Vulcan_ to a halt and then he winched Carl to safety.

Most people would've thanked the person who'd just saved them from death in space, but Carl was too angry to thank his brother when he entered the cockpit. "I BLOODY KNEW WE SHOULD NEVER HAVE USED THESE STUPID THRUSTER-PACKS!" he roared. "USELESS! UNRELIABLE! THAT'S WHAT!"

"So…what now?" asked Terry.

Carl took deep breaths to calm himself down. "Now?" he asked. "I'll tell you what we do now, Terry. We go back and finish what we started. Now STOP SITTING THERE LIKE AN IMBECILE AND GET US BACK TO THAT FREIGHTER!"

"Er….yeah, Carl, sure," stammered Terry as he fired the _Vulcan's_ main boosters once more and turned it round.

But as they approached the location, both men stared in disbelief at the empty section of space that lay ahead of them.

"But…but…where is it?" Carl asked. "Where's the damn freighter?!"

"I-I dunno, Carl," Terry said. "This is the spot for definite."

Carl looked around trying to catch any sight of the freighter. And then he saw something that made him shake with fury. "THERE!" he yelled pointing.

Terry blinked in astonishment. Just visible in the distance was the freighter being pushed towards the Moon by Thunderbird 3.

"It's those BLOODY THUNDERBIRDS!" Carl thundered. "They're trying to rescue our prey! Terry - GET AFTER THEM!"

"Yes, Carl!" said Terry. He turned the _Vulcan_ sharply to the left and set off in pursuit.

Their presence however did not go unnoticed by Beth and Adrienne who saw the Vulcan on their radar.

"Here they come," said Adrienne. "And they're gaining fast."

"There's nothing we can do, Adie," Beth said grimly. "We have to keep going."

"But Beth, they must know that we helped put their brothers away," said Adrienne. "They're probably going to want payback for that."

Beth just scoffed. "Yeah, well they're not going to get it," she said.

Just then, more blips appeared on the radar screen. They looked up and could just make out five shapes silhouetted against the Moon. they recognised the shapes at once.

"It's the Interceptors!" said Adrienne with relief. "Now they've had it!"

The five white Interceptors moved towards Thunderbird 3 and the SF-17. Not far behind them were the two Space-Tugs sent to assist the stricken freighter.

In the lead Interceptor was Captain Juliette Pontoin, a French pilot from Paris. On her radarscope she could also see the _Vulcan_ trying to catch up to Thunderbird 3. "This is Interceptor Leader," she said into her radio. "Enemy spaceship is attempting to catch the International Rescue craft. Prepare to engage and capture."

"Roger," answered her four wing-women. They were Lieutenants Karen Wainwright and Magnolia Jones from America, Dianne Simms from Great Britain and Chan Kwan from China.

The five Interceptors moved into a V-shape formation and closed the gap between them and the others.

The Briggs brothers continued to pursue Thunderbird 3, unaware that there was trouble coming from the opposite direction.

"Keep on it, Terry," Carl kept urging his younger brother. "We've got to stop them!"

"I can't go much faster, Carl," replied Terry. "We might burn out our own motors!"

"I DON'T CARE!" roared Carl. He grabbed the controls. "Give me the sticks!" he barked.

But as they got closer to Thunderbird 3, their radar suddenly detected five unidentified objects coming past Thunderbird 3 and the freighter. Terry was the first to see what it was. "Oh, no!" he cried in horror. "Carl, look!"

Carl looked and stared. There were the five Interceptors heading straight for them. "The Interceptors!" he cried. "No! Not now! Damn it!"

"Let's get out of here!" cried Terry.

Carl turned the _Vulcan_ round and tried to run back towards Earth. But due to their ship's age and lack of power, it was no trouble for the Interceptors to gain on them.

" _Vulcan_ pilots, this is Interceptor Leader," Captain Pontoin said over the radio. "We have you in our sights. Surrender now or we will attack."

"GET LOST!" Carl shouted back over the radio. "LEAVE US ALONE!"

The five pilots couldn't help but smirk to themselves.

"I think he wants to play rough," observed Lieutenant Wainwright.

Captain Pontoin chuckled. "Well in that case," she said and pressed a button. "Fire 1s!"

A missile was launched from all five aircraft which all overtook the _Vulcan_ and then crashed into each other exploding and causing the old ship to shudder.

"They're going to kill us!" wailed Terry.

"Shut up!" Carl snapped. "They're not going to get us, Terry! I won't let them!"

But the Interceptors weren't finished. Captain Pontoin decided to use the exact same trick that they had used to stop the freighter. She fired a second missile from her Interceptor which stuck the _Vulcan's_ engines. The damage was now done and despite Carl's best efforts, it slowed and came to a stop, smoking heavily at the rear.

Carl knew there was nothing more they could do. He got up, walked round to the back of the cockpit and began to bang his head on the door. "This can't be!" he cried. "I can't have failed my brothers! It's not fair! IT'S NOT FAIR!"

Thunderbird 3 continued to assist the SF-17 for another ten minutes before they rendezvoused with the two Space-Tugs. Beth released the grappling arms and backed her craft away so that the tugs could take over. One fastened a cable to the front whilst the second did the same and the rear.

"This is Space-Tug 1," the Captain said over the radio. "Thank you, International Rescue. We'll take it from here."

"You're very welcome," said Beth. "Safe trip, SF-17."

"Thank you, International Rescue," said a very grateful Craig.

"And thanks from us as well," Kris added.

Beth and Adrienne beamed as they turned Thunderbird 3 round and headed back towards Earth.

As they made their way back along the route, they spotted the disabled Vulcan surrounded by the five Interceptors.

"Gutted, Briggs!" jeered Adrienne, making an L-symbol on her forehead. "Losers!"

Beth just laughed.

The Briggs brothers found themselves handcuffed in the cockpit of the Vulcan. Captain Pontoin and Lieutenant Jones had boarded and placed them under arrest. Terry was sobbing like a baby whilst Carl sat and sulked. He then caught sight of Thunderbird 3 passing and muttered angrily under his breath.

Daniel then made contact. "Base to Thunderbird 3. I see you're heading back to Earth," he said. "I trust all is well?"

"It is, Dad," Beth replied. "We'll be home for supper."

"How's Kyrano doing?" asked Adrienne.

"No change I'm afraid," Daniel said. "He still hasn't regained consciousness. Rosie's still monitoring his progress and Karolina hasn't left his side."

Beth and Adrienne looked at each other sadly. They hoped that this didn't mean what they feared.

"I hope he wakes up soon," said Adrienne. "We've not got long to go until Christmas."

"He's always pulled through, Adie," Daniel said. "Don't lose faith. See you later. Out."

Adrienne and Beth just sat back in silence as they continued on their journey back to Earth.

Adrienne then broke the silence. "We never did have that coffee Kerry said we could have," she said.

"It's just a coffee, Adie," Beth answered. "There's plenty of it at home."

"True, Beth," agreed Adrienne. "Very true."

Daniel had just been finishing off his part of the Volcano Incident Report. It was a mandatory thing that anyone who took part in a rescue operation had to do, no matter how big or small their role in it was. For Daniel it was mostly about him going into the collapsing farmhouse to save the farmer's wife and her mother. Apart from that, he and Katie had done nothing except fly Thunderbird 2 around. Katie, Laura and Wizzy had already done their parts. All that was left was to receive the parts from Adrienne, Beth and Rosie. However, Daniel knew that he would have to wait for theirs due to Adrienne and Beth being in space still and Rosie's attention was on Kyrano at this point. He knew he certainly couldn't push Rosie for her part of the report right now.

"There," Daniel said when he'd finished. "That should do it."

There was a beeping noise from the desk and a hologram of Rosie appeared. "Mr Tracy, can you come down to the Sick Bay, please?" she said.

"Sure. I'll be right with you," said Daniel. _Maybe Kyrano's finally come round_ , he thought to himself as he headed out of the lounge and down to the Sick Bay.

When Daniel reached the Sick Bay, he saw that Kyrano had indeed woken up. Rosie and Karolina were both there too. He noticed straight away that Kyrano was scratching his head looking bewildered and they were looking rather concerned.

"Hello, Kyrano," Daniel said. "How are you feeling?"

But Kyrano didn't answer Daniel's question. In fact he didn't even look at him. Instead he simply said, "I must see my brother. I must see my brother."

Daniel frowned slightly. "I…beg your pardon?"

"He keeps asking for my uncle, Mr Tracy," Karolina said.

Daniel's frown increased. "Your uncle?" he repeated. "But neither of you have heard from him in over three years!"

"I know," said Karolina. "I don't get it either."

Rosie looked at Daniel. "Should we allow him here or take Kyrano to him?" she asked.

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "Seriously, Rosie?" he said. "We don't even know where the guy lives. How exactly could we get in contact with him?"

"I may still have his number on my phone," Karolina said. She took her phone out and looked through the list of contacts. "Yes, I do," she said. "I just hope he hasn't changed it."

Rosie looked at Daniel again. "What do you think?" she asked. "Should we allow this?"

Daniel sighed. He really wasn't keen on having people on the island who didn't know of their work as International Rescue. But when he looked at Karolina and saw the pleading look in her eyes, he reluctantly gave in. "Okay," he said. "But…not until Thunderbird 3 gets back, and not until after Lady Penelope's brought Sian and Cassidy home. We don't want to be letting him in on too many secrets."

Karolina and Rosie nodded in agreement.

Sian O'Connor was woken up by the Matron in charge of the infirmary at Hounsdown Boarding School. "Come on now," she said. "The headmaster wants to see you after breakfast and before your first lesson."

"First lesson?" Sian asked. "But I feel terrible still."

"No excuses, O'Connor," the Matron said sharply. "I've passed you as medically fit and so you will go back to your lessons. A full day in here is more than enough for what you've had."

Sian sighed heavily. _It's so unfair_ , she moaned to herself. _Why do we never get treated with respect and that pathetic clot Thompson does?_ However, she knew better than to argue with the Matron. She was the most feared person in the school after the Headmaster, possibly after Eugene Thompson as well although Thompson liked to think he was the main one.

Cassidy walked into the vast dining hall where every student and teacher gathered for meals. Breakfast was served at 7:30, lunch at 13:00 and supper at 17:00. Lessons lasted one hour each with two before break time, one between break time and lunch and then two after lunch. There would then be another rest period before dinner and after that it was social and homework time before bed at 21:00. It was a strict routine that every student had to follow without question or there would be trouble. Cassidy was in the group of Year 9 students whilst Sian was in the Year 11 group. Neither had many friends and liked to keep themselves to themselves, which was probably why they got picked on alot - especially by Thompson.

Cassidy reached the kitchen and waited to have her tray loaded with food. But she'd noticed that what the dinner lady put on her plate was smaller than what she'd given the boy in front of her. "Hey, why have I got less than him?" she asked.

"You get what you given," the dinner lady said. "Now move along, you're holding up the queue."

"Yeah, shrimpy, hop it!" shouted a Year 11 boy from further back in the queue. Cassidy recognised the voice as belonging to Kenny McFarlane. He was one of Thompson's best friends and was his big muscular right-hand man. He was nicknamed 'King Kong' because of his strength and build.

Cassidy just grimaced and moved on her way.

Sian was not looking forward to meeting with Mr Nightingale the Headmaster. After breakfast she went along to his office as instructed and waited. But it was a good fifteen minutes after she should have gone to her first lesson that he eventually called her in. "You know, O'Connor," he said. "I've been watching you and your sister during your time here. I must say up until the other day, you record has been rather good. No insults, no late homework, not even a detention on your file. And now you throw it all away by slapping Eugene Thompson across the face."

"He deserved it," Sian said.

"Deserved it, you say?" asked Mr Nightingale. "And why's that?"

"Because he bullies my sister, sir," said Sian, her voice slightly raised. "And nobody does a damn thing about it!"

"You cut that out right now, young lady!" snapped Mr Nightingale. "You have no right to go around and accuse people without any proof!"

"So explain why Cassidy has had so many cuts and bruises over the years," said Sian.

"She's just careless," Mr Nightingale said. "I've seen her trying walk through doors without opening them first and falling over during PE lessons."

This was true, Sian had to admit. Cassidy was a bit accident-prone. But she'd never suffered any major injuries in PE like she'd received from Thompson.

"Now I've written to your mother a lot," Mr Nightingale continued. "And yet I've never had a reply. I have therefore had to insist that she attends a mandatory meeting tomorrow with myself and Mr Thompson. He wants to make an official complaint for the way you've treated his son."

Sian was outraged. "WHAT?!" she shrieked jumping up from her chair. "BUT I'M THE ONE WHO GOT BEATEN UP!"

"AFTER YOU ATTACKED HIM FIRST!" thundered Mr Nightingale. He cleared his throat and then lowered his voice. "This is exactly why we will be discussing this tomorrow in the meeting. And I suggest you think long and hard about what you're going to say to your mother because if you cause ANY more trouble. You will be expelled from this school. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

Most children would've cowered under Mr Nightingale's thunderous voice. But somehow, Sian did not appear to be bothered. "Do you even know where my Mum lives?" she asked.

"Of course I do!" said Mr Nightingale shortly. "I've written it on so many letters now that I can write it without even looking it up."

Sian smirked slightly. "That's not where they go," she said. "Can I go now?"

"Yes, get out," Mr Nightingale said sharply.

Sian left the office and slammed the door behind her. "Expelled!" she muttered angrily to herself. "I'd leave before I allowed that to happen."

Cassidy was just as outraged when Sian told her the story during break time. "How dare he say that!" Cassidy fumed. "Just what is his problem with us?"

"Favouritism, teacher's pet, that kind of crap," Sian said.

"Rubbish!" snapped Cassidy. "How could anyone call that douchebag a teacher's pet?!"

The school bell rang signalling the end of break time and they had to go to their respective lessons. Sian had Geography on the top floor of the school's East Block whilst Cassidy had English on the floor below. This was one of the few lessons that Cassidy enjoyed for she was taught by her favourite teacher - Miss Kate Magill.. But today she found herself unable to concentrate for what Sian had told her had upset her too much.

By contrast, Sian hated her Geography teacher - Mrs Cheryl DiLandro. She was strict and no-nonsense person who would have everyone work in silence and would shout at anyone who she thought was talking.

Sian's seat was by the window looking out across the school car park and bus area. Like Cassidy, she was having trouble concentrating and found herself glancing discreetly out the window. It was a dull, grey day with rain pouring down the glass. But as she tried to write her piece about earthquake fault-lines, one of the boys sat a few tables ahead suddenly let out a disgusted cry. "Ugh! What a disgusting-looking car!"

"Be quiet, Tennant!" barked Mrs DiLandro. But her words weren't heard as all the other children either stood up or just looked out of the window. They began to laugh and jeer.

Sian blinked in amazement at the sight of a large pink six-wheeled Rolls-Royce that had just driven through the gates. She recognised it instantly as it pulled up in the bus area. A man in a chauffeur's uniform stepped out of the driver's seat with an umbrella. He walked round to the back and opened the left-side rear door to allow a very posh-looking young blonde-haired in a grey coat, blue jeans and black knee-high boots step out the rear of the car. She took the umbrella from the man and began to walk towards the school's main entrance whilst the chauffeur went and got back inside the car. Sian watched the woman walk along the path from the car park and through the main entrance.

"Lady P?" Sian said in a quiet voice. "What are you doing here?"

"O'Connor, get on with your work!" barked Mrs DiLandero.

 _Oh, shut up, you bitch_ , Sian thought to herself as she got back to her work.

Mr Nightingale was busy in his office when his intercom buzzed. "Yes?" he asked.

"Mr Nightingale," answered the voice of his secretary. "There's a woman here asking to see you."

"I have no appointments with parents today," the Headmaster said. "Is it Mrs O'Connor?"

"No," replied the secretary. "It's Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward."

Mr Nightingale was surprised. "Well send her in then!" he barked. He stood up and hastily brushed up his suit to make himself as presentable as possible. The door opened and Lady Penelope walked into the office. "Your Ladyship," said the Headmaster taking a bow. "It is an honour!"

"I'm sure, Mr Nightingale," said Penelope. She allowed him to kiss her hand, only out of politeness.

"Please, please, take a seat!" said Mr Nightingale. "Now, what brings you to my school?"

"I'm here on behalf of a friend," said Penelope. "Joanne O'Connor."

The smile vanished from Mr Nightingale's face. "But the meeting's not until tomorrow," he said.

"I know all about that, Mr Nightingale," said Penelope. "She's told me everything. The letters you've sent. The bullying from Eugene Thompson over her daughter Cassidy and how her other daughter Sian stood-up to him to protect her sister. And yet, Mr Nightingale, whenever these things happen, it always seems to be them who get into trouble and not young Thompson. Would you care to explain that?"

Mr Nightingale hesitated. Penelope noticed that a bit of sweat was forming on his brow. His skin too had gone a bit white as well. "Er, with all due respect, Your Ladyship, but I can't really discuss these kinds…"

"It wouldn't possibly have anything to with the fact that Eugene's father Andrew Thompson is the head of the Southampton Mafia?" Penelope asked.

Mr Nightingale went even whiter. The sweat also began to increase. His right hand gripped the arm of his seat rather tightly. "How…how do you…know this?" he asked, sounding rather freaked out.

"I'm a lady of social life and peace, Mr Nightingale," said Penelope. "I hear lots of things. I also know a great many people and have several sources of information." She was of course referring to Parker, the driver of FAB1 which was waiting outside. Parker had once been a criminal until Penelope's father found him and set him on the straight-and-narrow by entrusting him to be Penelope's bodyguard, driver and butler. Now the two of them were virtually inseparable. "Now," said Penelope, not taking her unblinking eyes off Mr Nightingale's. "I suggest you tell me everything."

It was end of lesson time and Miss Magill was about to dismiss her class. "Now remember, homework for the holidays is to read on 'Hamlet'," she said. "There will be a twenty question quiz first lesson back so make sure you all read it thoroughly." she looked at her watch. "Lunchtime now. Off you go. QUIETLY!" she finished for everyone got up very quickly and left the room.

But as Miss Magill was gathering up her papers and preparing to leave for the Staff Room, she saw that not all of the class had got up and left. Cassidy was still sitting at her desk looking sadly down at her lap. She had not done much of her work either.

"Are you okay, Cassidy?" Miss Magill asked as she headed over.

Cassidy looked up. There were tears forming in her eyes. Unlike the other teachers that she had, Miss Magill was the only one who Cassidy could ever open up to. "Sian saw the Headmaster this morning," she said. "He gave her an official warning over her actions the other day. He also said that if she does anything else like this then he will expel her."

Miss Magill was shocked. "He can't do that now," she said. "I'm sure that was just a threat to make sure that Sian thinks twice before trying anything like that again. I can't understand it myself. Like you, she is one of the quietest and most pleasent students I've ever known."

Sian also had Miss Magill as her English teacher.

Cassidy knew Miss Magill was only being polite and kind as she ever was, but she was still scared. "I don't know what I'd do without her, Miss," she said, tears trickling down her cheeks. "Sian means the world to me. I honestly don't know how I'll cope without her next two years when she's finished. I'll feel so alone and vulnerable."

"But Eugene Thompson will be gone as well, Cassidy," said Miss Magill. "He won't be able to cause you any more trouble then."

"I still get picked on by people in my own year," Cassidy went on. "And there's Dean Gough in Year 10. He's just as nasty as Thompson."

"Shhh," said Miss Magill putting a comforting hand on Cassidy's shoulder. "Look on the bright side. It will be the last day tomorrow and then you can go home and see your mother. All you need is to get away for the Christmas period and come back fresh. You'll see. I promise." She then wiped Cassidy's tears away with her fingers.

Mr Nightingale poured himself a glass of whisky that he kept hidden in his cabinet. It was just for medicinal purposes he claimed. "When Eugene Thompson first came to this school, his father and I had a meeting. He said to me that I needed to give his son all the privileges of the school. He was to be treated with respect by both the other students and all of us teachers. If anything were to happen to him whether it be a fight, a PE incident or an accident in the Science Labs, he said there would be major trouble."

"What sort of trouble?" Penelope asked.

"Said he would sue the school," Mr Nightingale said shakily. He paused and took a swig of the whisky. "He also said that if he were ever given a detention, he would…he would…"

"Hurt you?" Penelope asked.

"No," said Mr Nightingale. Tears began to form in his eyes now. "Not me." He then picked up a photo from the desk and showed it to Penelope. "Them."

Penelope looked at the photo. It showed Mr Nightingale with his wife and two young children. "He'd go after your kids?" she asked.

Mr Nightingale nodded. "Charlotte is five," he said. "Toby is three. I could never forgive myself if I let anything happen to them or Julie."

Penelope sighed. "So Andrew Thompson blackmailed you into giving his son all the privileges that he wanted or he would go after your family," she said.

Mr Nightingale nodded again. He was shaking like a leaf. "And now he's probably going to kill me when he finds out I've told someone," he sobbed.

Penelope shook her head. "I won't let that happen, Mr Nightingale," she said. She had been fiddling with her watch. Mr Nightingale hadn't noticed this but Penelope had been secretly recording the conversation via the watch. It looked normal from the outside but like every member of the International Rescue team, it had been upgraded by Jodie to become a tracker, recorder and communicator all in one. "This has gone on for long enough. It's time it was ended."

"I agree," said Mr Nightingale. "But how on earth are you going to do that?"

"My contacts will deal with it," said Penelope. "And now, Mr Nightingale, where might I find Sian and Cassidy?"

Mr Nightingale looked at his watch. "It's lunchtime now," he said. "I expect they'll probably be in the dining hall."

"Take me to them," said Penelope.

"Well, sure," said Mr Nightingale getting up. "But what are you going to talk to them about?"

"Nothing," Penelope replied. "I'm here to take them home."

Cassidy had finally left Miss Magill's class and made her way down the stairs to the ground floor. She needed to take her things back to the dormitory before going for lunch.

"Cassidy! There you are!"

Cassidy turned round to see Sian hurrying towards her. "Oh, I'm sorry, Sian," she said. "I had a bit of a sad moment just now."

"I guessed," said Sian. "Your eyes are red." She bent down and lowered her voice. "Lady P's here!"

Cassidy blinked and stared. "What?!" she exclaimed. "Where?!"

"I don't know," said Sian. "But FAB1's in the car park. Look!"

Cassidy peered out the window of a nearby door. Sian wasn't wrong. There was no mistaking that very distinctive pink shape. "What's she doing here?" asked Cassidy.

"I've no idea," Sian replied. "But my guess is that she's possibly come to see us."

"Why would she do that?" Cassidy asked.

"Well, if we find her, we can find out," said Sian. "Come on!"

They hurried off trying to see if they could find where Penelope was. They had a feeling that she might be in the Headmaster's office. And sure enough, as they passed, the door opened and Penelope came out followed close behind by Mr Nightingale.

"Lady Penelope!" they both cried together.

"Goodness, there you are!" Penelope laughed as the two girls threw their arms around her waist. "Hey, Sian…" She held Sian's bruised face and stared in disgust at her black eye. Then she looked at Mr Nightingale. "Look at her, Mr Nightingale," she said. "This is what bullying has allowed to happen."

Mr Nightingale said nothing. He just hung his head.

"What are you doing here, Lady Penelope?" asked Cassidy.

"I'm here to take you home," Penelope replied.

The two girls looked at each other, startled. "Home?!" they both said together.

"But we don't finish until tomorrow," said Sian.

"Well, your mother has asked me to bring you home today and that's what I'm going to do," Penelope said. "Now run along and pack all your things up. I just need a few more words with Mr Nightingale here. When you've finished go to FAB1. Parker will be waiting."

Sian and Cassidy grinned for the first time in a very long time as they both sprinted away to head back to their dormitories. They had a lot of things to pack before they could leave.

Each of the dormitory rooms held four beds. Cassidy shared hers with Alice Roberts, Georgina Prince and Belle Potter. All three were very surprised when they entered to find Cassidy happily packing all her clothes and other belongings into her suitcases.

"Packing early, Cassidy?" asked Alice.

"What's the rush?" added Belle.

Cassidy grinned. "I'm going home," she said.

The three girls looked at each other.

"But last day's tomorrow, Cassidy," said Georgina.

"For you it is," Cassidy said as packed the last few things into her bags. "But for me and Sian - we're going today." She picked up her bags and pulled up the handle of the wheely-suitcase before heading out the door. "See you!" she called. "Have a good Christmas!"

The three girls were lost for words.

Cassidy and Sian had finished at the same time and both left the dormitories together. As they hurried along the path across the Sports Field, past the Tennis Courts and the Special Needs blocks, they got several bewildered looks from the other students as well as some of the teachers.

Mr Doug Wallace called out "WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?!" but they paid him no attention.

Then there was trouble. As they rounded the final corner towards the car park, they suddenly froze for standing halfway between them and where FAB1 was parked was none other than Eugene Thompson himself and his band of cronies including Kenny 'King Kong' McFarlane.

"Well, well, well," said Thompson advancing slowly towards the two alarmed girls. "What do we have here?"


	4. The Visitor

SIAN and Cassidy backed away slowly. Eugene Thompson and his cronies stood in front of them. Then they heard footsteps from behind. Mr Wallace along with Technology teacher Mr Deadman and Mrs DiLandro were coming up behind. Several other children from different years were coming out or appearing at windows trying to see what was going on. Of course none of them knew the reason why Sian and Cassidy were heading towards the car park with their bags.

"What's with the bags?" Thompson asked. "Surely you're not thinking of running away, are you?"

"Girls!" barked Mr Wallace. "I don't know what you think you're doing but take your belongings back to your rooms right now!"

Lady Penelope had just got back to FAB1. She found Parker standing beside the car looking concerned.

"I'm h'afraid we've got trouble, m'lady," Parker said.

Penelope looked and saw the line of bullies blocking Sian and Cassidy's path. "Oh, dear," she said. "I was afraid this might happen."

Sian caught sight of Penelope between Kenny 'King Kong' McFarlane and Bob Gooseman. She made a silent gesture to Cassidy who nodded. They took each others' hands and charged forwards. They slammed into Thompson and knocked him over. Everyone else gasped in horror.

Kong and the other bullies tried to grab them but they managed to escape from them with all their stuff.

"Hurry, girls, hurry!" Penelope shouted.

Thompson quickly got to his feet and saw where Sian and Cassidy were heading. "OI! GET BACK HERE!" he bellowed running after them. He pushed past his cronies and sprinted towards FAB1.

"Quickly!" Penelope said. She and Parker helped Sian and Cassidy throw their bags and suitcases into the boot of FAB1 and then hurried round to the left-side door. Cassidy got in first followed by Penelope and then Sian. parker quickly shut the door and climbed into the driver's seat.

"WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?!" Thompson bellowed as he approached FAB1. "MY FATHER'S NOT DONE WITH EITHER OF YOU YET!" He ran round to the left-side. "GET OUT OF THE CAR!" he shouted punching the glass dome.

ZAP! FAB1, like the International Rescue vehicles was fitted with very sophisticated security systems. These included an electronic force-field that covered the entire vehicle. The shockwave from Thompson's punch sent him flying backwards landing about twenty feet away.

"Parker, go!" said Penelope.

Parker didn't waste a second. Before anyone else could get near the car, he quickly drove them out of the car park and onto the open road. But as they went, they spotted a large black limousine approaching. And in the car was none other than Andrew Thompson - the father of Eugene who was a very dangerous crime boss operating in Southampton. He recognised Sian from a photo that his son had sent him the same day that Sian had attacked him.

"That's the O'Connor girl!" Mr Thompson said. "What's she doing in that car? Get after them!"

The driver of the limo accelerated and began to chase after FAB1.

Eugene, who'd been helped to his feet by his friends saw his father's limo setting off in pursuit. "OH YEAH, GO GET 'EM, DAD!" he called delightedly. "YOU GO SHOW THEM WHO THEY'RE MESSING WITH!"

FAB1 raced along the road away from the school and out into the countryside with the limo in hot pursuit. Mr Thompson wanted to teach the O'Connor girls a serious lesson for the way they'd treated his son even though they were the ones who were innocent.

"Who are they?" asked Sian glancing anxiously back at the limo. "Why are they chasing us?"

"I do believe that Andrew Thompson is in that car, Sian," sighed Penelope. "Parker, we need to get rid of them."

"Right-ho, m'lady," said Parker giving FAB1 more speed. At first they began to leave the limo behind for FAB1 was a much faster car, but as they headed down a country lane, they suddenly found themselves right behind a large green tractor which wasn't going very fast at all. "Oh, blast!" said Parker.

"Quick, down that side road!" said Penelope.

FAB1 turned off to the right and headed down the narrow lane. They hoped they'd get down before the limo caught up. It wasn't to be however and the limo was soon following them down it.

Cassidy and Sian had never felt so scared. More than they had been earlier when they were confronted by Eugene and his cronies. They blinked in surprise when Penelope took out her phone and linked a cable to her watch.

"What are you doing?" Cassidy asked as they bounced along.

"Sending the recorded confession of the Headmaster to the Police," Penelope replied. "Now they will have the evidence they need to send the Thompsons down - if we can hand them over to them. Try and keep the car steady, Parker."

"Sorry, m'lady," Parker replied as FAB1 continued to bounce. "But this road surface h'is terrible!"

It really was a bad road. It was mostly mud and gravel mixed together. There were many dips that were full of water due to the rain that had been falling that morning. Neither FAB1 or the limo could get up to speed. They both also splashed through a huge puddle that covered the entire road putting filthy mud all over both their shiny paintwork.

"Oh dear," sighed Parker. "I h'only washed it this morning."

"There, road, straight ahead!" said Penelope pointing.

FAB1 left the bumpy lane and was back on tarmac again. Parker put his foot down and raced ahead. But the limo wasn't too far behind and was soon chasing after them once more. The road they were now on ran through the New Forest across open fields. The road was straight and there was nowhere FAB1 could turn. It was lucky that there were no other vehicles around.

"This is taking too long," Mr Thompson growled to his henchmen. "Bring them to a stop."

The henchman in the front passenger seat and the one in the back with Mr Thompson sitting on the right-hand side of the limo were both armed with machine-guns. They opened the windows, leaned out, took aim and began to spray FAB1 with bullets. Sian and Cassidy both cried out in fright but Penelope pulled them in close for comfort. Parker gritted his teeth as he weaved about on the road trying to dodge the bullets despite the fact the car was bulletproof.

"Are they going to kill us?" asked Sian, terrified.

"Never," said Penelope. "Parker, this is getting tiresome. Please get rid of them."

"Yus, m'lady," said Parker. He flicked a switch on the dashboard. Two small vents opened in FAB1's rear bumper and began to release a thick cloud of black smoke. It engulfed the limo and the henchmen had to close the windows for they were all coughing and spluttering.

FAB1 then reached a crossroads and sharply turned right. They hoped that by the time the limo had escaped from the smoke that they'd be gone. But it wasn't to be. Even though the limo had gone straight across the crossroads, Mr Thompson had glanced back and seen FAB1 racing up the hill in the other direction. "You fools!" he barked. "GET AFTER THEM!"

The driver spun the limo around on the spot by pulling a handbrake turn. He then began to drive across the grass cutting off the corner.

"They're coming after us again!" Sian cried.

"Shall h'I launch, m'lady?" asked Parker.

"No, Parker, we have to make sure the Police get them," said Penelope. "Just keep going."

The roads become more twisty and turny as the two long vehicles skidded round the corners. Then as they passed a T-junction, a Police Car spotted them and set off in pursuit.

"Boss!" exclaimed the henchman in the back of the limo.

Mr Thompson looked back. "Blast it!" he cursed. "Bloody coppers! Lose him and don't lose them!"

That wasn't possible however as the Police Car would more likely chase them rather than FAB1. Then as they continued through the forest, three more Police Cars appeared out of nowhere to join the chase.

"The Police are here, Parker," said Penelope. "I think it's time we left."

"But, m'lady, those men are h'armed," said Parker. "The fuzz h'aren't."

"Oh, of course!" Penelope realised looking back at the limo. She gasped for she saw the two men with the machine-guns now aiming at the Police Cars. "Parker, stop them!"

Parker didn't need to acknowledge as he pressed another button on the dashboard. A small flap opened beside the boot of FAB1 and a paint gun nozzle lifted up out of it. He then fired a shot of black paint onto the windscreen of the limo.

"AGGH!" cried the driver. "I can't see! I can't see!"

Cassidy then spotted a danger ahead of them. "Parker, look out!" she cried.

Parker saw it too. The road took a sharp turn to the right with a wooden fence lining the far side. "'old h'on!" he said flipping another switch. This time wings rolled out from underneath, the radiator grill became an jet-engine air-intake and the wheels became jet-thrusters. FAB1 then lifted up off the ground, much to the shock or Cassidy and Sian who had no idea the car could even fly, and passed over the fence. It didn't land for they were now passing over the sea.

The driver of the limo couldn't have had a clue about the cliff they were approaching. He desperately tried to clear the windscreen of paint with the wipers but it only made it worse. As they spun out of control, they suddenly crashed through the fence and plunged over the edge. The four men screamed as they dropped over sixty metres and crashed into the rocks below. The petrol ignited blowing the car and those inside it to pieces.

Penelope, Cassidy and Sian had all seen the explosion. Whilst they were somewhat relieved that they were now safe, they hadn't wanted the chase to end this way. Now Eugene Thompson was without a father, and they could no longer make Andrew Thompson pay for his blackmailing the school Headmaster as well as the other teachers.

"Where to, m'lady," Parker asked after a few minutes of silence.

"Tracy Island, Parker," Penelope answered.

Nothing more was said as FAB1 passed over the Needles on the Western-tip of the Isle of Wight and headed out to begin the long journey to Tracy Island.

FAB1 might be the only flying car that was actually reliable, but fast it was not. Even though it could match the speed of regular airliners, it didn't have the speed that the Thunderbird ships had. At top speed, Thunderbirds 1 and 2 could get to England in well under an hour, but FAB1 took over four hours to reach the one-hundred mile exclusion zone around Tracy Island.

Sian and Cassidy had fallen asleep during the journey so Penelope and Parker talked in hushed voices.

"H'any word from the rozzers, m'lady?" Parker asked.

"Yes, they confirmed no survivors from the wreckage of Mr Thompson's limo," Penelope replied. "But they have placed big Police guards on the school and taken Mr Nightingale's family to a safe place just in case any of Thompson's gang try to get revenge."

"H'I see, m'lady," said Parker. "Bad business. Very bad."

Penelope then spotted the shape of mountain peaks on the horizon. She nudged Cassidy and Sian gently until they awoke. "Hey, we're almost there," she said.

Cassidy and Sian blinked as their eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight. Then ahead of FAB1, they saw one of the best sights they'd ever seen - Tracy Island.

"Oh, wow!" Cassidy said. "I'd forgotten how incredible it was!"

"Tracy Island from FAB1. We h'are on final h'approach," Parker said into FAB1's radio.

"FAB1 from Tracy Island, you are clear for landing," Daniel's voice answered. "Welcome home, Sian and Cassidy."

The two sisters grinned happily as Parker guided FAB1 around before making a smooth landing on Thunderbird 2's runway.

Cassidy and Sian entered the Tracy Mansion and ran straight into the arms of Joanne. She sobbed happily as she hugged them tightly. "Oh, my babies!" she said, having never been so happy to see them. Then she looked up at Penelope and Parker. "Thank you," she said.

Penelope smiled. "You're very welcome," she said.

As Joanne let go of Sian and Cassidy, they heard a loud sneeze coming from the lounge.

"Bless you, Dad," they heard Beth's voice say.

"Thanks, Beth," Daniel's voice replied. Then he appeared from the lounge. "Uh-oh, here's trouble!" he said when he saw them.

"DANIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEL!" Cassidy squeaked running and jumping into his arms, almost knocking him off his feet.

"Oof! Steady on now!" Daniel laughed. "I'm glad to see you too, you little tigress." He then moved his right arm so that Sian could get in on the hug as well. "Oh, deary me," he went on when he saw Sian's black eye. "Now that needs to be fixed, doesn't it?"

Beth, Laura, Wizzy, Katie and Adrienne all appeared in the doorway of the lounge. Zoë also appeared at the doorway of the kitchen. Leanna, who had been out on the beach had seen FAB1 in the distance and come round to see them as well.

Joanne and Parker took the girls and their bags upstairs to their room whilst everyone else went into the lounge.

"How's Kyrano?" Penelope asked once they were settled.

"Not great," Daniel sighed. "He's still under observation. Rosie just can't figure out what's wrong with him."

"And Karolina says he's been asking to see his brother," added Laura.

Penelope raised an eyebrow. "I did not know that he had one," she said.

"His name's Trangh Belagant," Daniel said. "Although I can't say I've ever heard of him before. They have never spoken of him either."

Penelope pondered. "Do you want me to do some background digging on him?" she asked.

Daniel looked at the girls. "Possibly," he said. "It does seem rather odd that they have never mentioned him or has he ever contacted them. There has to be a reason."

"I'll look into it when I get back," said Penelope.

Daniel nodded. "Fair enough," he said. "Would you care to join us for dinner and stay the night before heading back to England?"

"That's very kind of you," said Penelope. "We'll have dinner certainly. I don't really want to be away too long or my father could get suspicious."

"That's fair enough," Daniel said. "Mum, what's for dinner?"

"Will steak and chips do for you, Lady Penelope?" Zoë asked.

"Mmmm," said Penelope approvingly. "Haven't had that for a long time. Thank you, Mrs Tracy."

FAB1 left just as the sun was setting over Tracy Island. Sian and Cassidy hadn't felt so happy in a long time. At last they'd had a meal with big portions and that they'd been able to enjoy. Plus they were with people who did care about them.

"You seem full of beans, Cassidy," remarked Wizzy.

"I've got to enjoy this whilst we can," Cassidy said. "I'm glad we've got a day extra's holiday that all the others. You should've seen the looks on my roommates' faces when I told them I was leaving early."

Daniel and Joanne exchanged a look. Joanne nodded so that Daniel could speak. "Er, Cassidy, this isn't actually a holiday," he said.

Cassidy looked at him with confusion. Sian did as well. "Pardon?" they both said.

"This isn't a holiday," Daniel repeated. "This is permanent. I'm guessing Penelope didn't mention that to you?"

Cassidy and Sian looked at each other with open mouths. "HUH?!" they both exclaimed.

"We've had enough of the way you two have been treated at that school," said Joanne. "So we've both decided to pull you out and have you live here from now on."

Cassidy and Sian couldn't believe their ears. Their shocked faces changed to huge delighted ones. They both squeaked with delight and threw themselves into Daniel and Joanne's arms. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" they both said happily.

"Christmas has indeed come early," joked Sian.

Everyone laughed. But Daniel stopped laughing very quickly when he caught sight of Karolina outside the lounge. She'd been about to come in but had turned away again. Daniel had a feeling he could guess why. "Excuse me a second," he said to Cassidy removing her so he could go and see Karolina.

Leaving the lounge, he headed outside onto the steps that lead from the main entrance of the mansion down to the lido around the swimming pool. He found Karolina sitting on a rock at the far end just out of sight of the mansion looking out to sea.

"Are you okay, Karolina?" Daniel asked.

Karolina whirled around, almost as though she was about to shout at him. But when she realised who it was she didn't. "Oh…I'm sorry…Mr Tracy," she said slowly. "I…should've guessed you'd come after me." She looked back out at the ocean. The sun had dipped below the horizon and only the last few bits of daylight were fading away. "In answer to your question, no I am not," Karolina continued. "Joanne has her girls back and everyone is happy. My father is ill and it's like nobody cares."

"Bullshit!" Daniel snapped. "That's not true and you know it, Karolina!"

Karolina hung her head in shame. "I'm so sorry, Mr Tracy," she sniffed. "I'm…made of stronger stuff than this."

"Of course you are," Daniel said. "That's why I made you head of security."

"Even if I don't have my own ship," said Karolina.

Daniel didn't say anything for a moment. He had actually been working on a secret project with Jodie and the five Tracy brothers for a while now. Karolina was unaware of it - and so where the rest of the team. Not even Kerry was aware of it. He drew breath and then continued. "Do you still want your uncle to come and pay a visit?" he asked.

Karolina hesitated. "I'm…not sure," she said. "Personally, I never really understood my uncle. He was never around. Only appeared once or twice a year sometimes, and all I ever recall was him and Father arguing. But if Father wants to see him, then we shouldn't really deny him what he wants."

Daniel came and sat down on the rock next to Karolina. "I feel similar to you, Karolina," he said. "On one hand, I'm not comfortable with someone I've never met coming here. We need to remain as private as we can because of the Thunderbirds. But then again, your father has done so much for us over the years that I can't deny him any request." There was a pause as they looked into each other's eyes. "Go ahead. Ask him to come."

Karolina pulled Daniel into a hug. "Thank you, Mr Tracy," she said.

"On one condition though," Daniel then said as she pulled away. "If we get a situation that requires our assistance, you will have to distract him until we get back."

Karolina nodded understandingly. "Of course," she promised.

The Tracy Mansion was a buzz of activity the following morning. Everyone was doing their bit to get the place neat and tidy for when their visitor came. Being such a big house, it needed everybody to help. Only Rosie did not participate for she was still monitoring Kyrano. Kyrano was now awake, but he wasn't saying anything. He had been moved from Rosie's lab to a proper bed in the Sick Room where he could be more comfortable.

At a quarter to noon, everyone had returned to the lounge having completed their tasks.

"All floors are hoovered, Dad," said Laura. She and her sisters had been working on that.

"Kitchen is spotless," said Zoë. Leanna and Karolina had been helping her.

"The room in the Roundhouse has been made ready," finished Joanne. Cassidy and Sian had helped her with that.

"Excellent," said Daniel. "And Jodie and I have made the lounge presentable. I think we're all ready."

"Not quite," said Katie. She nodded towards the Wall of Portraits showing Daniel, Kerry and the girls in their International Rescue uniforms.

"Ah, yes!" said Daniel. "Operation Cover-Up." He pressed a button on his desk. The photos in the frames turned around to reveal them in regular clothes. "There," he said. "Now Mr Belagant won't suspect a thing."

"Just so long as we don't get any emergency calls whilst he's here," said Laura.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," said Daniel. "I have informed Kerry and she has said that she will not make any contact unless its absolutely necessary. Also, she will contact me via my phone and not set off the alarm."

The radar beeped and revealed the icon of an approaching aircraft.

"Noon did you say he was due?" Beth asked Karolina.

"Correct," Karolina replied.

"Well, he's a very good time-keeper," Daniel said. "I'm impressed."

Everyone looked out of the big windows and out across towards the ocean. Just visible in the distance was a small red private one-seater jet. In the cockpit was Trangh Belargant, secretly known as The Hood!

The Hood had been rather taken-aback by Karolina's call to request he come and see Kyrano. He was delighted, but not in the way Karolina would've thought. His eyes flashed with glee when he saw the sight of Tracy Island in the distance. "So, this is where they've been all this time," he said. "The fools! Do they not suspect the danger they are now in? Soon I will learn everything there is to know about International Rescue!"

The Hood brought his jet around and landed on the runway before coming to a stop in front of the cliff that led into Thunderbird 2's hangar. The cliff face opened and his eyes flashed again waiting eagerly to see the great green leviathan as he felt certain this must be where it launched from. But to his surprise, Thunderbird 2 was not there. Instead there was simply a plain open hangar with just a few parking spaces for jets including the Tracy family's own private jet, DT-1.

 _Thunderbird 2 must be concealed around here somewhere_ , The Hood thought to himself. _No matter. I've got a few days here so I shall be able to find out where they all are by the end of it_.

Karolina met her uncle down in the hangar before taking him up to the mansion where the others were waiting.

"Mr Tracy, may I introduce my uncle Trangh Belargant?" Karolina said when they reached the lounge.

"Mr Belargant," Daniel said shaking hands.

"Mr Tracy," The Hood replied. "A pleasure."

"Pleasant journey?" Daniel asked.

"Indeed," The Hood said. He then turned to the others and gave a small bow. "Ladies," he said politely. "Nice to meet you all."

"Welcome, sir," said Katie.

The Hood smiled before turning back to Daniel. "How is my brother?" he asked.

"Very quiet, I'm afraid," said Daniel. "He's not said a word since he asked to see you."

"I see," The Hood said. "May I see him?"

"Of course," said Daniel. "Karolina?"

"Follow me, Uncle," said Karolina. "I take you to him."

"Leave your bags here, Mr Belargant," said Joanne. "We'll take them to your room in the roundhouse."

"Why thank you, Miss…?"

"O'Connor. Joanne. Call me Jo."

"Pleasure," said The Hood nodding.

Everyone watched as Karolina led The Hood out of the lounge and down towards the Sick Room.

"He seems very pleasant," observed Leanna.

"A gentleman most certainly," agreed Adrienne.

But Beth and Laura were not looking convinced.

"I'm sorry, but what's his relation to Kyrano again?" Beth asked.

"Brother," said Katie. "He's Karolina's uncle so that makes him Kyrano's brother. It's the same as Kerry being our aunt as she's Dad's sister."

Beth frowned. "No disrespect," she said, "but he lookings nothing like Kyrano. Nor does he sound like him either."

Daniel raised his eyebrows. "So?" he asked. "You five are sisters, yet none of you look alike."

 _This was true_ , Beth thought. "Yes, I suppose, Dad," she said, feeling slightly ashamed. "I'm sorry."

To look at the five sisters, anyone would think that Beth was the eldest being the tallest and yet Laura was the eldest despite being the shortest. Laura, Katie and Adrienne all had dark-brown hair so there was some close link between them whilst Beth was a much lighter brown and Wizzy was practically blonde. Zoë had put it down to Laura, Katie and Adrienne having their father's hair whilst Beth and Wizzy having their mother's.

Laura had not said a word since seeing The Hood. From the moment she first saw him, something was now running through her head that she couldn't quite put her finger on.

"You okay, Laura?" asked Leanna, noticing the look her Laura's face.

"Huh?" Laura asked snapping out of her small trance. "Oh, sorry, Leanna. Yeah. Yeah, I'm good."

Karolina took The Hood down to the Sick Bay where Rosie was giving Kyrano yet another checkover. He still had not moved from when the last time Karolina had been in to see him.

"Rosie, this is my uncle Trangh Belargant," Karolina said. "Uncle, this is Dr Rosie Hall."

"Nice to meet you, Mr Belargant," said Rosie.

"Pleasure is mine, Dr Hall," The Hood replied. He then looked at Kyrano. "How is he?"

"No change," Rosie said. "He's been like this for five days now. This isn't the first time that he has had these attacks. But they've always passed within a day. We have no idea what the cause is."

The Hood knew what caused the attacks, but he wasn't going to reveal that to them. "May I have some alone time with him, please?" he asked.

Rosie and Karolina looked at each other.

"Of course," Rosie said. "Have as long as you need, sir."

They left the room and closed the door behind them. The Hood then approaches Kyrano's bed in a slow and somewhat menacing kind of way. Kyrano's eyes moved towards him and then slowly his head turned. His already frail skin seemed to turn white at the sight of him. "You…" he said very slowly.

The Hood's eyes turned to their sinister yellow colour. "Yes, Kyrano, my half-brother," he said. "And now that I am here, you will will help me find out everything. I need a plan of the house, and the locations of the secret entrances to where the Thunderbird machines are housed."

But Kyrano did not reply. His face just remained blank as though he was now staring right through The Hood's body.

The Hood relinquished his power and stared down at his brother. It was now that he realised that his plan wasn't going to be as straightforward as he'd expected. _My brother is weak_ , he thought to himself. _He resists my power. I will have to search alone_.

He turned and walked out of the Sick Room, slightly irritated that his plans to learn the secrets of Tracy Island had already received a major setback.

As the afternoon progressed, The Hood avoided any contact with the rest of the household. Instead, he wandered around through the corridors and observed the rooms looking for any clues as to where the International Rescue machines could be reached. He believed that by searching alone he wouldn't attract any attention. He was wrong however for Laura, who was still feeling very suspicious of their visitor, had caught sight of him wandering and decided to discretely follow him.

 _Who are you, Mr Belargant?_ Laura was asking inside her head. _Why are you walking around like you have lost something? And most of all, why do you look so familiar?_ In the end, she decided she could not keep it in any longer and she made herself shown to The Hood. "Can I help you, Mr Belargant?" she asked. "The rest of the family is back this way. And if you don't mind me asking, have I seen you somewhere before?"

"It's the resemblance to my brother, that's all," The Hood said simply and then he carried on leaving Laura even more suspicious than before. Beth's words from earlier came back to her. "You are _nothing_ like your brother," she remarked quietly to herself. Rather than continue following him, she decided to head back up to the lounge. _Maybe I'm just over-reacting_ , she thought to herself. _But I'll keep things to myself for now_.

The Hood walked down a corridor right in the very rear of the mansion. It was a long curved corridor that didn't seem to lead anywhere. In fact it did for one of the many secret access points to the sub-basements was down here but it was well hidden. And even if like The Hood someone did come across it, it could only be accessed by a member of International Rescue. He looked around the wall panel and found what could only be either a hand or eye scanner. He bent down and peered into it. Two blue lights shone out from the device into his eyes, but then a red light flashed and it buzzed.

" _Access denied!_ " a computer voice said.

"Blast!" The Hood cursed. "I knew it wouldn't be that simple. There has to be another way to get into their hangars without trying to get past all this nonsense!"

He suddenly heard footsteps coming from along the corridor and he quickly hurried off in the opposite direction, not wanting to be discovered. Little did he know however that a small concealed CCTV camera in the ceiling had caught him attempting to get in. The camera linked through to Daniel's office. He'd been alerted by the computer and had observed him. He too now started to become suspicious of their guest.

Daniel brought up the Wheel of Communication again and selected FAB1 once more. Lady Penelope answered straight away. "Hello, Daniel," she said. "How can I help?"

"Penny, I need some information about a person if you can get it," said Daniel.

"Whatever you need, I will get it," said Penelope with a smile.

"It's about this Trangh Belargant," Daniel said. "He arrived today to see his brother. But he does not seem to be spending any time with him. From what Karolina told me, she and Rosie left him alone with Kyrano and yet our security system has just informed me that he tried to get access to one of our secret doorways."

"That is rather odd," said Penelope. "I'll do some digging and see what I can find."

"Thank you," said Daniel. "Oh, by the way, I was going to ask when you were here but there wasn't a good time for it - any news on our mystery friend?"

"The Hood?" asked Penelope. "No, I'm afraid not. Parker and I caught sight of what looked like one of his henchmen - Mullion I believe in London just last week. But he disappeared before we could get anywhere near him. Guessing he must have seen us."

"Hmm," said Daniel. "This is an ongoing thing that's been going for too long I feel, Penny. The Hood has been a thorn in our side for quite some time now. And yet we have no idea what he even looks like."

"With all the disguises he apparently wears, it's no wonder we don't have a clue," Penelope replied. "I will keep you posted of course."

"F-A-B," said Daniel. "Tracy Island, out."

Laura could not get to sleep that night. The thoughts of the visitor kept going through her head. She just could not place where she might have seen him before, but she felt certain that she had. Eventually, she sat herself up in bed and picked up her watch from the bedside table. There was one person who may be able to confirm her suspicions for her. After pressing the button on the side of the watch a certain number of times, she waited for the person she was calling to answer.

A young man around Laura's age with brown hair appeared in a hologram-form from the watch's face. "Laura. Rather late calling aren't you?" the man said.

"Sorry, Scott," Laura said to her eldest cousin, "but I have a problem that I think only you can help me with."

"Okay…" said Scott. "What is it?"

Laura showed Scott an image she'd taken through her phone earlier that day of The Hood wandering through the mansion. "Does this guy look familiar?" she asked.

Scott frowned. "Who is he?" he asked.

"His name is Trangh Belargant," Laura replied. "He's Karolina's uncle and the brother of Kyrano."

"I see," said Scott. He looked at the image closely. "I can't say he looks familiar, Laura. What makes you think that he would to me?"

"I'm not entirely sure," Laura said. "But he looks like that guy you and I chased in Thunderbird 1."

"We chased several people in Thunderbird 1," said Scott. "Could you narrow it down?"

"The guy who filmed us whilst we were rescuing those actors," said Laura.

Now Scott realised what she meant. "Ah, I see!" he said. He then looked more closely at the picture. "Now that you've said it, he does look similar. That guy was bald from what I recall. But then again, there are a lot of bald blokes on this planet."

"True," agreed Laura. "Okay, Scott, thanks. I just wanted to get that off my chest."

"No problem," said Scott. "But I'd certainly keep an eye on him. There is definitely something about him that looks off."

"I will," said Laura. "Night, Scott."

Scott nodded and his hologram disappeared. Laura put her watch back on the bedside table and laid her head on her pillow. She was convinced that Mr Belargant was up to something, and whatever that was, she was determined to find out.

The Hood woke up early morning. As he watched the sun rising, a plan had formed inside his head. If he could somehow get the Thunderbirds to launch, he'd be able to find out where they were hidden. He'd already guessed that the runway was where Thunderbird 2 launched from, but he still hadn't figured out where Thunderbirds 1 and 3 were located. From what he'd seen there were only two possible places they could be unless there were other parts of the island which he had not seen yet. Then an idea came to him. He put his bag on the bed in his room and took out a radio. He used it to make a call to his temple in the Malaysian Jungle.

Transom answered the call. "Yes, boss?" she said.

"Transom, I need you and Mullion to create a disaster for International Rescue," said The Hood. "I do not care what you do so long as it's serious enough for them to launch their ships."

"Understood," said Transom. "We will leave at once."

The Hood smirked. _I expect Tracy won't want me around when they launch the ships as he will want to keep it all secret_ , he thought to himself. _But if I could somehow get Karolina to take me around the outside of the island, there could be a chance that we see them_.

Transom and Mullion flew another of The Hood's jets out to the United States. They headed for the Colorado and the Grand Canyon where they knew the perfect place to create a situation for International Rescue. A huge metal double-tracked railroad bridge stretched across one part of the canyon. It was almost two miles in length and was at least a mile off the ground. It would certainly be a long way down for anything unfortunate enough to fall over the edge.

Mullion and Transom landed the jet on the Western side of the canyon and ignored the 'Keep Out' sign as they walked along the trestle of the bridge. Both had picked up big stones before doing so which they planned to use as their means of sabotage. They walked quickly out to about three-quarters of a mile from where they had come from before firmly lodging the stones in between the rails. They were strong enough to be a danger to the train, but not big enough for the driver to notice - at least that was what they hoped.

"There, it is done," said Mullion. "We should go before the train gets here."

A loud horn sounded out, but coming from the opposite direction.

"Get down!" Transom said.

Both ducked down out of sight as the six-car train came across the bridge. It was a Japanese-built Bullet-class high-speed train that now operated in many countries around the world. It was a bit like a monorail but had two track-slots for its roller-wheels instead of just one. This technique was perfected and proven very safe to the point that there had been no recorded accidents of any kind. This was something that Mullion and Transom were hoping to change.

"Right, that's it," said Transom once the train had reached the other side of the bridge. "Let's get out of here."

They hurried back along the trestle until they reached the end of the bridge. They climbed back into the jet and took-off vertically before beginning to fly around in a high loop to wait for their victim to arrive.

"There it is," said Mullion.

In the distance, gradually getting closer to the bridge was a small sleek streak of white. It was another Bullet-class six-car train coming from the East. It raced at high speed before beginning to slow down in order to cross the bridge. The normal speed limit for the railroad was two-hundred kilometers per hour, but due to the height of the bridge, it was limited to just fifty.

The train slowed to its designated line speed as it began to cross the two-mile long bridge. None of the two-hundred and fifty passengers and crew aboard had any idea of the danger they were about find themselves in. The first anyone knew of anything out of the ordinary was when the female driver of the train spotted a small shadow on one of the rails. Squinting her eyes due to the sun, she was horrified when she realised what it was. She let out a big gasp and slammed on the brakes. Sparks flew as the brakes squealed loudly. Waitresses and the conductor aboard the train plus a few passengers standing were all thrown off their feet due to the violent motion. Food, drink and briefcases flew everywhere.

"Come on! Come on!" cried the driver. "Stop! Stop! STOP!"

But it was too late. The train was still going too fast. It hit the stones wedged firmly in between the rails and caused the front rollers section to break out of their slots. The nose of the train jolted upwards and over to the right. The rear rollers did the same and so did the first set from the second car. The nose crashed through the railings and then came to a stop with the front half of the coach hanging dangerously over the edge of the bridge.

The passengers, who initially wondered what was happening, looked out the windows. The ones in the front coach immediately began to panic when they saw that they weren't on the bridge anymore. The huge drop didn't help things either.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please remain calm," the driver said over the tannoy. "Everyone in the front car please moved into the second. Quickly but calmly please."

The passengers tried to do so but discovered another problem. The corridor section that linked the two cars together had twisted and become so narrow that nobody could get through. Worse still as they tried to shift it, the movement upset the balance causing the train to move forwards slightly with the front car hanging further out over the side.

"Okay, everyone, just stay very still and where you are," the driver said. "I'm going to call for help." She activated the train's emergency beacon and spoke into the radio. "Mayday! Mayday! Calling International Rescue! This is the Cross-States Express out of Philadelphia bound for Los Angeles. Are you receiving me?"

Thunderbird 5 soon picked-up the distress call. Kelly, who was on duty currently with Katrina, took the call. "This is International Rescue. We are receiving you Strength-Five. What's your situation?"

"International Rescue. My train is coming off the rails," the driver said. "Something had been wedged in between them. My lead car is over the side of the Grand Canyon Bridge. I have two-hundred and fifty people aboard and we're trapped."

"All received, Cross States Express," said Kelly. "We'll be right with you." She reached over to press the alarm button for Tracy Island.

"STOP!"

Kelly and Katrina both jumped as Kerry seemed to appear out of nowhere and cover the button.

"They have a visitor on the island," Kerry said. "We can't alert them to our organisation." She went to her desk and picked up her phone before sending a text message to Daniel.

Everyone on Tracy Island was having breakfast. Being a guest, The Hood sat at the far end of the table to where Daniel sat. He was telling everyone about his life and the construction companies he operated. At least that's what he was trying to make them believe for it wasn't entirely true. Only Daniel and Laura remained suspicious although they tried not to show it. The others seemed rather fascinated.

"So you see," The Hood concluded. "In just a few years, my company will outdo all the construction businesses in Asia!"

"Wow!" remarked Leanna. "That's quite a story, Mr Belargant."

"I did wonder why you hardly ever around when we lived in Malaysia," Karolina said. "You were just a very busy man."

Daniel felt a buzzing sound in his pocket. He took out his phone and looked at the message. It showed the four words he had not wanted to see or hear.

"We have a situation!"

Daniel knew they had to distract Mr Belargant somehow. Then he had an idea. "Karolina," he said, "did you say you were going to show Mr Belargant the caves this morning?"

Karolina looked at him, puzzled. But when she saw he was holding his phone, she soon realised what he meant. "Oh, yes, of course I was!" she said. "Shall we, Uncle?"

"But of course," smiled The Hood. "Lead the way."

Karolina led him out of the dining room.

The others looked at Daniel. Joanne and Zoë weren't very happy with Daniel.

"Daniel, that is no way to talk to a guest like that," said Zoë sternly.

"I was enjoying his story, Dad," said Wizzy grumpily.

Daniel ignored them. Instead he tapped the phone's screen. "Go ahead, Kerry," he said.

Kerry's hologram appeared from the phone. "Good," she said. "This is very serious this one."

The annoyed faces from the others quickly vanished when they suddenly realised.

"Oh," said Adrienne. "That's why he asked him to be removed!"

Now everyone felt bad for being annoyed with Daniel.

Kerry brought up a hologram over the table for everyone to see. "This is the Grand Canyon Bridge," she said. "A train passing over it has hit some kind of obstruction on the track. The front car has derailed and is hanging over the side. This needs to be sorted quickly."

"Right," said Daniel. "Katie, launch Thunderbird 2. Take Laura and Beth with you."

The girls looked at each other, surprised.

"Are you not coming?" asked Katie.

Daniel shook his head. "Not with Mr Belargant on the island," he said. "Not after what I caught him doing yesterday."

Before anyone could reply, he then brought up the CCTV footage from his phone showing The Hood trying to work out how to use the scanner by the access door to the sub-basement.

"What the?!" exclaimed Jodie. "How the blazes did he find that?!"

"Don't know, but I'm not leaving the island with him here," said Daniel. "So you three go without me. also , Karolina's taking him to the opposite end of the island to where Thunderbird 2 is. There's therefore less chance he'll hear it launching."

That made sense, the girls agreed. Laura, Katie and Beth hurried out of the lounge. Laura went to the lounge to get her uniform via the revolving express elevator that lead to Thunderbird 1 whilst Katie and beth got theirs by using the express elevators that went down to Thunderbird 2's silo. Once Laura had got into her suit, rather than going into Thunderbird 1, instead hurried down another corridor where she joined Katie and Beth before entering Thunderbird 2. Laura sat in Daniel's seat whilst Beth sat behind Katie. Katie selected Pod 3 which contained the big yellow Magnetic Grapple and once the conveyor had moved it into position, lowered the main body down over it. The large metal wall in front of them opened downwards to where the rest of the hangar was, including The Hood's jet before turning right as the rockface door opened. Thunderbird 2 taxied out onto the runway with the palm trees falling back to let them pass. Once in position on the launching ramp, the wings folded down and the ramp lifted upwards into position with the blast shield rising into place behind them

5…4…3…2…1!

The rocket engines fired and Thunderbird 2 rocketed up off the ramp into the sky.

"Thunderbird 2 is go!" announced Katie. "En-route to the Grand Canyon."

"Let's hope Mr Belargant did not notice," said Laura.

It was lucky for them that they launched when they did for Karolina had literally taken The Hood into one of the caves. He did hear the rumble of Thunderbird 2's engines and rushed outside to see what it was. But to his dismay, Thunderbird 2 had already gone and was out of sight. He had not seen where it had launched from.

"Uncle? What is it?" Karolina asked.

"I, er, what was that?" The Hood asked, pretending not to know what the noise had been.

"Probably some jet flying overhead," Karolina replied. "Now, come on. I want to show you the cave's big lagoon. You might see our resident Water Mamba."

The Hood followed Karolina back inside the cave. His plan to catch the Thunderbirds launching hadn't worked. _Blast it!_ The Hood cursed to himself. _I'll have to catch them on the way back._

As Thunderbird 2 thundered at maximum speed across the Pacific Ocean, Laura decided to ask her two sisters a question that was still bugging her. "What do you two think of Mr Belargant?"

"He seems a very nice person," Katie said. "I don't understand why he, Kyrano and Karolina have not kept in contact all these years."

"He did say he was a very busy man," said Beth. "But even then one should always try and have time with their family. Unless he's one of these self-obsessed businessmen?"

Laura sniffed. "I'm not convinced," she said.

"Gosh, you really don't like him, do you?" asked Katie. "I don't think you've even said a word to him since he arrived."

"I have my reasons," said Laura, still looking directly ahead. "He's only been in with Kyrano once. I found him snooping around the back of the house yesterday afternoon. About two hours after he arrived."

Katie and Beth frowned.

"What was he doing down there?" Beth asked.

"I don't know," Laura replied. "Call me silly if you must, but I have this strange feeling that I've seen him before."

"When?" Beth and Katie asked together.

"Two years ago," said Laura. "He looks like the guy that Scott and I chased following the incident on that film set in Nevada."

"The guy who filmed us?" asked Katie. "Didn't he then steal an aircraft?"

"Yes, and then crashed into somebody's house because the plane had issues," said Laura.

"That was quite a smash though from what we saw on the video footage from Thunderbird 1 if I recall correctly," said Beth. "I'm pretty sure he couldn't have survived that."

"I doubt he would have," agreed Laura. "I spoke to Scott about it last night and he's not convinced. As he said, there's more than one bald bloke on this planet."

Beth and Katie laughed.

"And we mustn't forget the images that Dad showed us before we came out," Laura added. "He's definitely up to something."

"Coastline dead ahead," said Katie catching sight of the United States on the horizon.

The situation at the bridge wasn't much different to what it had been before. All the passengers in the front car tried to keep as still as they could, but their stomachs were churning making several of them feel unwell. It then got too much for one woman passenger. "I can't stay here!" she cried. "I've got to get out of here!" She tried to push her way past the other passengers to get to the exit.

"Stop!" shouted a male passenger. "Stay where you are!"

Three other passengers had to grab the woman. She fought back knocking one man into the door leading into the driver's cab. This caused the train to shift again making everyone cry out in alarm. Fortunately it only moved two inches, but it was beginning to create strain on the corridor and couplings between the first car and the second.

The conductor of the train along with the other staff members were ushering the passengers from the other five cars through the exit doors onto the maintenance walkway and telling them all to head back to the end of the bridge that they had come from. However, this began to make the train lighter causing another couple of short jolts inching it further over the edge.

Then everyone stopped at the sound of an approaching aircraft. They looked up and saw Thunderbird 2 approaching from the South-West. They began to wave and shout in order to grab the crew's attention.

"There's the bridge," said Katie.

"And there's the train," said Laura.

"Jesus!" remarked Beth. "What's the action?"

Jodie then appeared over the hologram-projector. "Scans from Thunderbird 5 show there are forty-two people trapped in the first car," she said. "It would seem the rest of the train is being evacuated."

"That's affirmative," said Katie. "They're all waving to us."

"What about the bridge?" asked Katie. "Any danger of it collapsing."

"Not according to our scans, no," said Kerry who was also listening in. "The only danger we're picking up is the coupling between the first two cars is weakening."

"So we lift it back onto the rails?" asked Laura.

"That could be risky," said Jodie. "I recommend that you cut the lead car free and then lift it to safety."

"I'll fly down there with my jetpack and use my laser-cutter," said Laura.

"We'll stabilize it with the magnetic grabs and then lift it clear when you're done," said Katie.

"F-A-B," said Laura. She got up from the seat and went over to the floor elevator whilst Beth came and sat in the seat. The elevator lowered so that Laura was now out in the open. She'd already put her helmet on and activated her jetpack. She headed down and grabbed onto the door beside the driver's cab. The driver opened the window. "Are you okay in there?" Laura asked.

"I will be when I get out of here," the driver answered. "How are you going to get us out?"

"My colleagues are going to attach a grapple and then lift you to safety," said Laura. "Just make sure to keep everyone still and calm and for them not to be alarmed when the lift commences."

"Okay, thank you," said the driver.

Laura headed up along the side of the car looking in at the frightened passengers as she passed. She then reached the coupling between it and the second car. "Okay, I'm here," she said. "Thunderbird 2, time for the grapple."

"Coming down now," said Beth as she moved a switch. The hatch opened in the bottom of Pod 3 and the big yellow magnetic grapple was lowered down to the train. Laura guided it into position and adjusted the cables so that it fitted perfectly around the car. Once in position, Beth activated the magnets and the grapple was locked onto the metal of the car.

"Grapple's locked," said Laura. "Now to cut it free." She used her jetpack to fly to the back of the first car and positioned herself by the couplers. "Is everyone okay in there?" she called through the corridor section.

"Yeah…" several uncertain voices answered from inside the car.

"Good," said Laura. "I'm going to cut the cars free. Just hold on tight." She took out her small laser tool and began to cut through the metal coupling. "Thunderbird 2, I'm cutting through the coupling," she said. "Be ready."

"F-A-B, Laura," said Katie. "Be careful."

The coupling was strong, but it didn't take long for Laura to cut through it. With the creak and a crack, the coupling broke and the car swung off the bridge. The passengers all cried out in alarm as it swung back and forth in the air over the canyon. They could only hope that this movement didn't loosen the grabs. The other passengers who were by now already safely back on firm ground had gasped in alarm too at the sight of the train as it swung. But the grabs held and after about thirty seconds, the car stopped swinging.

"We've got it," said Katie. "Now let's get it back to firm ground."

Emergency services from nearby towns were now starting to arrive. Police Cars, Ambulances and Fire Trucks along with a few helicopters raced towards the bridge. Thunderbird 2 maneuvered the car over to the West-side of the canyon and carefully placed it on the ground. The services then swarmed around it to get the very relieved passengers off and to check them over. They were all very shaken, but none of them were hurt.

Laura, who'd stayed behind on the bridge whilst Thunderbird 2 had been taking the car to safety, began to search for clues to what could've caused the train to derail. She had to crawl underneath the second car and it didn't take long for her to find the answer. "Thunderbird 5, I've found the cause," she said. "Someone has put small rocks in between the rails."

"Rocks you say?" asked Kerry. "So this wasn't an accident. But who could've done that?"

"Whoever it was is probably long gone," said Laura. "And there's no CCTV on this bridge that could help us."

Kerry checked the schematics of the bridge. "Actually, there are," she said. "I'll take a look through the footage. Those trains cross the bridge at thirty minute intervals in each direction. Whoever it was would've done it in between that one and the one before."

Laura frowned. "I wonder…" she muttered to herself.

As Thunderbird 2 left the scene and headed back towards Tracy Island, Kerry contacted them again.

"Any luck with the footage?" asked Laura.

"Affirmative," said Kerry. "Two culprits - one man and a woman leave the bridge about seven minutes before the train came along."

"Man and a woman?" asked Katie.

"Yes," said Kerry slowly. "And they're no strangers." She then showed them the footage. It showed a big dark-skinned muscular man followed by a woman with long-brown hair and black-rimmed glasses with the face like a weasel.

"Mullion!" growled Beth.

"Transom!" hissed Katie.

"Bloody knew it!" snapped Laura.

"What's this?" Daniel then appeared on the hologram projector as well.

"The Hood's minions were behind this, Dad," said Laura.

Daniel sighed. "Why am I not surprised?" he said. "I trust all the passengers are safe?"

"That they are," said Laura. "We left them with the local emergency services."

"Very good," said Daniel. "Karolina's still showing Mr Belargant around the caves so you should be able to land without him seeing you."

"F-A-B," said Katie. "We'll be with you in fifteen minutes."

The Hood was getting bored looking around the caves. He and Karolina had spent quite some time around the big lagoon located deep inside one of them.

"Karolina, where is this so-called Water Mamba you claim lives here?" he asked. "I don't see anything down there."

"He's very shy," Karolina admitted. "Guessing today is one of them."

"Can we go back now?" asked The Hood. "This humidity is starting to get to me?"

Karolina checked her watch, and then her phone. There was no message from Daniel saying that it was okay to come back yet. "We haven't finished yet," she said. "There's still the beach on the opposite side of the island that I need to show you. Come on."

The Hood grumbled under his breath as he followed Karolina further through the cave.

It was whilst they were going through the caves that Thunderbird 2 returned to the island. This time, The Hood heard nothing.

"Here's the beach," Karolina said when they reached the other side.

The Hood looked at the beach. It was a spectacular sight, to someone who was interested. He managed to show it on the outside, but deep down he was getting frustrated at not being able to do what he wanted.

When they eventually did return to the mansion, it was early afternoon. As Karolina and The Hood entered the lounge, he almost fell over in surprise when he saw that all the girls were there. "W…what?!" he stammered.

"You okay, Mr Belargant?" Daniel asked. "You've gone pale."

The Hood quickly tried to recover himself. "I, er, sorry," he stammered. "I think the heat from all those caves has got to my head." He turned to Karolina. "Could you excuse me whilst I take a nap?" he asked.

"Of course," she said.

The Hood then made a rather hasty exit from the lounge. Karolina glanced out after him. He looked to be shaking and had his fists clenched tightly as though he was frustrated by something.

"What the hell was that all about?" asked asked Wizzy.

"Another suspicious move," said Daniel.

Karolina looked at them. "Excuse me?" she asked.

"Karolina," said Daniel. "Look at this." He then showed her the CCTV footage of The Hood trying to get access to the door leading to the sub-basement.

Karolina stared at the footage with confusion. "When was this?" she asked.

"Yesterday," said Daniel. "About two hours after he arrived."

Rosie then spoke up. "From what we can tell, he was with your father for only five minutes," she said. "He has not been in to see him since."

Karolina shook her head, bewildered. "This must be a mistake," she said.

"It's not, Karolina," said Laura. "I found him snooping around the corridors yesterday as well. I'm also convinced that I've seen him somewhere before as well."

The others except for Beth and Katie looked at her. "Where?" they asked.

"The Nevada film set incident," said Laura. "He looks like the guy that Scott and I chased."

There was silence as everyone looked at each other.

"Don't be daft, Laura," said Jodie. "That guy stole a plane and crashed. If the crash didn't finish him off then the owners of that house would've had him arrested."

Laura nodded. "Yes, I suppose," she said.

The Hood entered his room in the Tracy Island Roundhouse and slammed the door angrily behind him. Not only had he missed the Thunderbird departing but had also missed it coming back as well. "It was a diversion," he said out loud to himself. "It had to be! Tracy must've told Karolina to keep me away until they had returned! CURSE IT!" He kicked a chair over. "I need to find those ships. I HAVE to find those ships! I did not come all this way to not find them! But where can I find them? WHERE?!" He placed his hands on the table by the window and took deep breaths to calm himself down. "Think," he said to himself. "Think now. Where could the ships be hidden?" He paused and thought about what parts of the island he'd seen. "The runway has to be where Thunderbird 2 launches from. The section of floor under this Roundhouse looks like a concealed entrance. This could be where Thunderbird 3 is housed. As for Thunderbird 1 - I'll take a guess that it's underneath the pool. I must take a closer look at the pool and see if there's any clues that it moves."

As evening drew in, The Hood made his way back to the mansion. Despite his frustration, he did not want the Tracy family to be suspicious of him - not realising that they already were. As he entered the mansion's main entrance, he heard the sound of Daniel's voice from the lounge. He slowly moved close to the door to try and listen in to what was being said for he realised Daniel was talking to someone over the phone or radio.

"I've been doing some digging into your friend Trangh Belargant," the voice of Lady Penelope said. "I'm afraid to say you were right to be suspicious."

"Do tell," said Daniel.

"According to the documents that I've found, Mr Belargant is apparently dead, Daniel," said Penelope. "He was listed as having been killed in one of your early missions."

Daniel frowned. "Which one?" he asked.

"He ran an illegal diamond mine in the jungle of Malaysia," Penelope said. "It suffered a collapse and International Rescue were called to the scene."

"Oh, yes, I remember," said Daniel. "We rescued around five-hundred from what I can recall. But I do not recall seeing Mr Belargant among them. Or even inside the mine. He must've been very lost and we did not even find him."

"But if he died in the mine, why is he on Tracy Island?" Penelope asked. "Is this not him?"

The Hood's heart was beginning to pound. He very carefully peered round the door. Daniel was at his desk with a hologram of Penelope and a hologram image of a document with a photo of him on it.

"That's him, definitely," said Daniel. "So where the hell has he been all this time?"

"I do not know," said Penelope. "But if he's still going to continue to snoop around your island like he is looking for something, I strongly suggest you ask him to leave."

"Karolina managed to take him to the caves when we launched Thunderbird 2 earlier and she managed to keep him away until after they got back," said Daniel. "But we're not going to be able to keep that up."

"You don't suppose he knows, do you?" asked Penelope.

"About us being International Rescue?" Daniel asked. "Of course not. How could he? There's no way either Karolina or Kyrano would have told him."

"True point," said Penelope.

"Also," Daniel continued. "Kerry found out from CCTV footage that it was Mullion and Transom who sabotaged the rail-bridge."

"Them again?" sighed Penelope. "Some master of disguise The Hood is if he keeps getting those two bird-brained lackeys of his to do everything for him."

The Hood had heard enough. He stormed back out of the mansion and returned to his room in an even worse mood than he'd been before. "So, they do know about me," he said to himself. "Clearly I wasn't careful enough." Then he realised. "That girl Laura must've told him and he's been monitoring me since! As for Lady Penelope, I had no idea she was even connected to International Rescue! I have had trouble with her in the past. Maybe I need to deal with her as well!"

The Hood was up very early the following morning once again. He had a feeling that his time on the island was not going to last for very long so he decided to make use of what he had as he made his way to the lido to have a close look at the swimming pool. _It won't be long before they ask me about my actions_ , he thought to himself. _But until then, let's see what I_ can _learn_.

As it turned out, nothing. He had his head close to the water trying look for anything that would allow the swimming pool to open, the sudden sound of voices made him jump back in alarm.

"LAST ONE THERE BLOWS HOT AIR!"

The Hood just managed to get clear as Beth dived into the pool followed by Wizzy, Katie, Laura and finally Adrienne. They created huge splashes of water which went all over The Hood drenching him. He glared at them furiously. "LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE!" he thundered.

"Sorry," Laura said, not sounding sorry in the slightest. "But that's what happens when you get too close to a swimming pool."

The others laughed loudly as The Hood shook with anger. "I'm going to speak to your father for this!"

"Be our guest," said Adrienne. "It won't be _us_ getting into trouble."

Still fuming, The Hood made his way up to the mansion and into the lounge where Daniel was at his desk. "Mr Tracy, I want a word with you," he said hotly.

"Likewise," said Daniel without looking up.

"Look what your girls have done to me!" The Hood said indicating his wet clothes.

Before Daniel could reply, Joanne, Cassidy and Sian entered the lounge bringing in three bags and a suitcase with them. They dumped them beside the door and then left without a word.

The Hood stared at the bags for he recognised them as his own. "What is this?" he demanded.

Daniel looked up at him. "You were invited here because your brother asked to see you," he said. "But I have been informed by various members of this household that you only visited him for five minutes and spent the rest of your first day snooping round this house like you were looking for something." He showed him the CCTV footage. "Would you care to explain why you tried to enter this door?"

The Hood tried to think of a reason very quickly. "I was just curious," he said simply. "I don't know of any other house that has doors with access panels to them."

"What's behind that door is no business of yours, Mr Belargant," said Daniel. He then stood up. "Also, there is this." He showed the document that Lady Penelope sent him. "Explain this."

The Hood looked at the photo of him on the newspaper article regarding the mine incident. "How was it that when International Rescue saved five-hundred men, you weren't among them?"

"I wasn't in the mine," The Hood said. "I was…"

"Several of the men claim that you were," said Daniel. "So unless you found another way out and then did not call for help?"

The Hood said nothing. Both men stared at each other for a few moments.

"I will not play host to anyone who does not respect what they were invited here to do, Mr Belargant," Daniel continued. "And I'm only going to say this once." He paused again. "Get the hell off my island!"

The Hood's nostrils flared up. He was very tempted to throw the full force of his hypnotic power onto Daniel and then proceed to take the girls as hostages. But when Karolina suddenly entered the lounge with her arms folded and a cross expression on her face, he decided against it. "As you wish, _Mister_ Tracy!" He picked up his bags, looked at Karolina who simply glared at him without a word, and then headed for the elevator that took him down to the hangar where his jet was waiting.

The sight and sound of The Hood's jet as it took off from the Tracy Island runway was a great relief to everyone.

"There he goes," Wizzy said to her sisters as they watched the small red jet disappear.

"Good riddance," said Laura as they climbed out of the pool and returned to the mansion.

After drying themselves off and returning to the lounge, they were all surprised to find Kyrano there with Rosie, Karolina and Daniel.

"Kyrano?!" exclaimed Katie. "Blimey, that was a quick recovery."

"Indeed, Miss Katie," said Kyrano. "I feel much better, thank you all."

"Come, Father," said Karolina. "You have been very poorly. You still need rest."

Kyrano smiled. "I am fine, Karolina, my love," he said. "Now that my brother has left." He turned to Daniel. "I must say, Mr Tracy, I am very surprised you were able to ask him to come and see me."

"Only answering your wish, Kyrano," said Daniel. "You asked for him to come."

Kyrano frowned. "My wish?" he repeated. "But, sir, I never asked for him to come here."

There was a stunned silence as everyone exchanged confused looks. Rosie, Karolina and Daniel were particularly puzzled as they had all heard him saying it.

"I think you were rather delusional, Kyrano," said Rosie breaking the awkward silence. "That'll be it I reckon."

The others all felt that Rosie was probably correct, but there still seemed something very odd about the whole thing.

Transom and Mullion were waiting to greet The Hood as he arrived back at the temple hideout.

"Hello, boss," said Transom as he exited the plane. "How was your…"

"WASTE OF BLOODY TIME!" The Hood thundered. His voice bouncing heavily off the walls of the hangar. "DID NOT LEARN A THING! THEIR SECURITY IS MORE ADVANCED THAT I EXPECTED AND I WAS FOUND OUT!"

They left the hangar and went down one of the corridors with The Hood still shouting loudly.

"Did you not see where the machines launch from?" asked Mullion.

"NO!" The Hood shouted. "YOUR LITTLE DISASTER DID NOTHING FOR ME! THAT NIECE OF MINE TOOK ME ON A TOUR OF SOME USELESS CAVES! I NEVER EVEN SAW WHATEVER THE CRAFT THAT I HEARD LAUNCH WAS!" He then entered the temple's Great Hall and slammed the doors in their faces. "NOW LEAVE ME ALONE!" he bellowed.

Mullion and Transom just looked at each other, stunned.

"Oh, dear," said Transom. "This isn't going to end well."

Transom was right. The Hood was right now walking slowly and menacingly towards the bronze statue of Kyrano in the middle of the Great Hall. A gong sounded from somewhere as the chain curtains drew back and the flames were lit behind it. Normally when The Hood tried to contact Kyrano he'd just talk normally and only use his hypnotic power when he wasn't getting anywhere. But this time he was so furious that he went straight into the hypnotic-mode. His eyes turned to their sinister yellow colour once more, somewhat seeming brighter than they had ever been before. "KYRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he bellowed.

The shout reached Kyrano just as he and Karolina were reaching the top of the Grand Staircase in the mansion. The pain that hit him was like a truck slamming into a brick wall. Kyrano screamed so loudly that the mirror on the landing shattered. Karolina tried to grab him, but his weight caused them to both fall backwards down the stairs. Both cried out as they hit the floor. At the same time, The Hood also felt a sudden sharp pain in his own head. He too cried out and collapsed onto the floor of the Great Hall.

The girls and Daniel came running out of the lounge just in time to see them both land in a heap at the bottom of the stairs.

"What the hell?!" exclaimed Beth.

Daniel and Rosie, who'd come out of the kitchen with Leanna and Joanne quickly checked them. Both had hit their heads and appeared to be bleeding. Kyrano's looked to be worse.

"For God's sake!" Daniel said. "Kyrano's only just recovered! What the blazes could've happened this time?"

"Let's get them both to the Sick Bay," said Rosie. She and Daniel picked up Kyrano with the help of Beth whilst Laura, Katie and Adrienne helped to move a very dazed Karolina to the Sick Bay.

Rosie once again gave Kyrano a check-over as well as Karoline. Normally Kyrano had never suffered an injury of any kind following any of his previous attacks, but this was different. Both he and Karolina had banged their heads against the wooden floor when they'd reached the bottom. Scans revealed something very worrying to Rosie though. Whilst Karolina's stats were regular, Kyrano's were not. "Look at this," she said to Daniel. "This isn't right."

Daniel looked at the stats screen. Kyrano's heart-rate had become rather irregular and he seemed to be breathing rather heavily. "What does this mean?" Daniel asked.

Rosie didn't answer for a second. When she did, her voice was hushed. "I have a hunch," she said. "But I hope I'm wrong."

The girls, who were outside watching through the viewing gallery had heard Rosie via a microphone. Then they all heard a weak voice coming from the beds.

"Mr…Tracy…"

Daniel came over to Kyrano. Rosie stayed at the stats-machine. Karolina had regained her senses and had climbed out of bed to take her father's hand. "Easy, Father," she said. "Take it easy."

"You called, Kyrano?" Daniel asked.

Kyrano's right hand shot up and grabbed Daniel's wrist. He then looked up at his employer with rather weak eyes. "Mr…Tracy…" he said slowly. "There is…something…I need to…tell you."

"Shh, Kyrano, rest," said Daniel trying to remove Kyrano's hand. "Wait until you're better."

But Kyrano continued. "I should have…told you…a long time ago…Mr Tracy. I am…so ashamed."

"Stop this talk," Daniel said sharply. "You've nothing to be ashamed of."

"What's he talking about?" Leanna asked the others inside the viewing gallery.

"Shhh!" the others hissed trying very hard to hear what was being said.

"It was…my brother…who does this…to me," Kyrano said weakly. "He causes me…great pain…with his power…"

"Power? What power?" demanded Karolina. "Father, what are you talking about?"

"My brother…has a psychic…hypnotic power…over me," explained Kyrano. "He…uses it…to try and get….the information….he wants."

There was confused silence. Daniel and Karolina exchanged looks.

"Mr Tracy…" Kyrano continued. "My brother…knows…about your…organisation. Has done…from the start. He wants…to get his hands…on your machines."

"Kyrano, stop this!" Daniel snapped. "You're getting delusional again!"

But Kyrano shook his head. "No, sir," he said, sounding even weaker than before. "He's tried…to get your ships…since the beginning." His hands suddenly gripped Karolina's and Daniel's even tighter than before. "Promise me…something…Mr Tracy."

"What?" Daniel asked.

"Don't…let my brother…get what he wants," said Kyrano. "There's…something else…you should know…"

"Father, please!" pleaded Karolina. "Stop this!"

"Rosie, get some of that calming drug of yours," Daniel ordered.

But as Rosie hurried to the cupboard to get the stuff she needed, Kyrano spoke again. "Mr Tracy…" he said, "my brother…is…The Hood…"

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!


	5. Sinking Feeling

TRACY Island had never been so silent since the days before it had been first discovered. Nobody living in the mansion could believe what had just happened. Daniel, his five daughters, Leanna, Jodie, Joanne, Sian, Cassidy and Zoë sat in complete silence inside the lounge. Nobody could think of anything to say. Even Kerry who was visible in the room via her hologram-form was silent. They were just simply shell-shocked. Only thirty minutes earlier, Kyrano had been walking around having seemingly recovered from his previous unexplained attack. And now he was gone. His heart had stopped beating. Rosie had immediately tried to resuscitate him but to no avail. Kyrano had gone to sleep - for the last time.

The silence was finally broken by the sound of footsteps as Rosie returned from the Sick Bay. She had just completed a post-mortem to try and discover the cause of Kyrano's sudden passing. "Heart-failure," she said simply. "It would appear that it started when he was on the stairs. That explains the irregular beat-patterns we were seeing, Mr Tracy."

Daniel sighed heavily. "How's Karolina?" he asked. His voice trailed off slightly towards the end for he knew his question was rather stupid.

"Distraught," Rosie said. "Need I say more?"

Everyone just shook their heads and looked glumly at the ground. All the girls' eyes were red due to the tears they'd been shedding. Even though Kyrano wasn't family by blood, they all considered him as part of it. It was the same with Karolina, the O'Connors, Rosie, Jodie and Leanna. They had different surnames but that was irrelevant. They all lived in the same mansion and Daniel, Zoë and their girls all saw them as part of the family.

"What do we do now?" Laura asked.

Daniel sighed again. "What else?" he asked. "We carry on with what we do. It's what he would want."

"I think she meant what do we do with Kyrano, Dad," said Katie.

"Oh…" said Daniel. "Well…that should be decided by Karolina. Whatever she wants, we will do."

The others all nodded in agreement. He was her father after all so she got the primary say in what was to be done.

"And then there's the other issue," said Beth.

"Yes," said Daniel, having gone from sad to seriously angry. "The revelation."

"We have had the world's most dangerous criminal on our island," said Wizzy. "And we didn't have a clue!"

"We had already figured out that there was something not right with him," Laura said. "But not even I would have thought that."

"It explains a lot though," said Beth. "Why he spent no time with his brother. He knew that this was the base of International Rescue and he wanted to find the machines."

"Thank God he didn't," said Kerry. "But that still leaves us with a huge problem. He knows where our base is. How are we going to prevent him from returning?"

"Our detection and defense systems," said Daniel. "The only reason his aircraft got here was because we allowed it. If he tries again, we'll be ready for him."

Leanna then spoke up. "What did he mean by psychic hypnotic power?" she asked.

That was something that everyone had been trying to figure out.

"Psychic mental attack perhaps?" said Katie. "If that's even possible?"

"It's not scientifically proven," Rosie said. "But there are cases where siblings can have a psychic link of some kind. Also, if he's studied some form of unexplained mystic arts, it may be plausible."

"You're saying that The Hood's been the cause of all these attacks?" asked Adrienne.

"It would seem the only possible explanation," said Rosie. "That's why we've never been able to learn the causes of them. It was all inside poor Kyrano's head."

"Bastard!" said Katie. "All that so he could learn our secrets!"

"But we've been operating for what four years now?" said Wizzy. "If The Hood really has been behind all of these, why did he never asked Kyrano where our base was?"

That was a very good point, everyone thought. That would possibly have been one of the first questions that The Hood would've tried to ask Kyrano for. And yet, he had not.

"I'm not convinced," said Joanne. "We don't have any proof of this kind of hypnosis. Without that, all we're doing is just speculating."

Jodie had been unusually quiet up until this point. "I possibly beg to differ," she said.

Everyone looked at her.

"Come again?" said Daniel.

Jodie had been thinking back to an incident in the Middle East in which she had gone an underwater diving expedition to a temple in a lake with Karolina, Professor Hiram Hackenbacker, who worked for the Tracy brothers at Tracy Aerospace and was known as 'Brains' who was Jodie's adopted brother, and world-famous explorer Professor Blakeley. They'd found treasure on the very first dive, and that night the group had been attacked by a mysterious tribesman with glowing yellow eyes which knocked them all out. Jodie and Brains had woken up to find themselves buried in the sand with Karolina in a trance inside one of the trailers and the Professor out cold.

"You remember the Lake Anasta incident?" Jodie asked. "The man who attacked us had some form of hypnotic power. It knocked me and Hiram out twice."

The others remembered the incident well. Thunderbirds 1 and 2 had flown out to the lake when contact with them had been lost. They managed to rescue the party and spent the night when Brains and Jodie decided to take a late-night swim down in the lake only to be attacked by the stranger again who then trapped them in the temple by setting off explosives. Gordon Tracy, Wizzy and Thunderbird 4 were sent down into the lake and then attacked by the stranger's own mini-sub only to then be destroyed by Thunderbird 4's missiles. Laura and Scott then dived down with an air-lifting kit and helped them free Jodie and Brains from the ruined temple.

"Hang on a second!" said Beth. "You're not suggesting that the man who attacked you was The Hood, are you?"

Jodie nodded. "I have a strong feeling that it could've been, Beth," she said. "Didn't Kyrano have one of his attacks just before we went out there?"

"He did, yes!" said Rosie, now remembering. "He must have somehow been forced to tell The Hood what you were doing and set out to lie in wait for you."

"But, if that's true," Laura pointed out, "that means he attacked his own niece!"

"Laura, I seriously doubt that if The Hood did not care about the pain he caused his brother, that he would care about what he did to his niece," said Daniel. "From what we know of The Hood, he is cold, cunning and uncaring. And he's a man who needs to be brought to justice."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Daniel went to visit Karolina later that evening. She had not left her father's side and was still holding onto his hand looking pleadingly at him to wake up.

"Hey," said Daniel. "Can I come in?"

"It's your house, Mr Tracy, you don't need to ask," said Karolina without looking at him.

"That's irrelevant," said Daniel. "I'm not the kind of person to interrupt private moments."

Karolina sniffed and wiped tears from her eyes. "Can nothing be done?" she asked.

"After three hours? Afraid not," said Daniel. "Rosie's in charge when it comes to things like this." He came over and placed a comforting hand on Karolina's shoulder. She winced slightly at first, but then brought her hand up to put over his. "You know we're going to have to arrange some form of funeral for him?"

"Yes, I do," Karolina replied. "I want it here."

"Here?" Daniel replied. "Not your previous home?"

Karolina shook her head. "I don't know anyone there anymore," she said. "The other villagers were not pleased that we left."

Daniel frowned. That seemed rather odd that the other members of Kyrano's village would be bitter of him and Karolina leaving them. "Very well," he said. "We can bury him in our private area. You'll be able to go and visit his grave as often as you like then."

Karolina looked up at Daniel. Her skin snail-trailed with tears. "Thank you, Mr Tracy," she said. Then she threw her arms around his waist and began to sob.

Daniel said nothing to begin with as he gently rubbed Karolina's back to comfort her. "Leave it to me," he said.

"Boss? Boss, can you hear me?"

The Hood slowly opened his eyes. He found himself lying on his bed with Transom and Mullion standing on opposite sides. He blinked in confusion. "Transom?" he said. "Mullion? What am I doing here?"

"You passed out in the Great Hall," said Mullion.

"You were screaming at your brother's statue and then collapsed," said Transom.

The Hood sat up, frowning. "Why was I screaming?" he asked. And then he remembered. "Oh, yes. Mr Tracy ordered me to leave his island before I had was able to find anything! My brother must answer for this!" He pushed them aside, left his room and returned to the Great Hall despite their protests.

"Boss, you must rest!" cried Transom.

"Silence, Transom!" The Hood snapped. "I give the orders around here!" He went into the Great Hall, expecting to be left alone. But Transom and Mullion followed him in anyway. They stayed at the back though so as not to disturb him. As The Hood approached the statue of Kyrano, the chain-curtains drew back and the flame torches lit up. The Hood glared hard at the statue. "Kyrano! I know you can hear me! My visit to the base of International Rescue gave me NOTHING! You and the Tracy family will suffer for it! KYRANO!"

There was no reply. Normally the statue would turn red whenever his power had taken hold of Kyrano, but this time it remained as normal. The Hood prepared to blast Kyrano with his power. But as his eyes went to turn yellow, they faded back to normal. The Hood frowned. He tried again, but the same thing happened.

"Something is wrong," The Hood said. "My power is not working! KYRANO!" He tried a third time, but once again, his power failed to come to life.

"Boss, you're weakened," Transom said. "You must rest."

This time, The Hood did not shout at Transom. Instead, he rubbed his head for a splitting headache was coming on. "I…you are right, Transom," he said slowly. "Maybe I do need to rest."

Mullion watched as Transom guided The Hood out of the Great Hall. As he glanced back towards the statue, he saw the flames die out and the curtains closed up again. This wasn't right, they all knew. The Hood had never failed to communicate with Kyrano.

Three days after Kyrano's passing, a small remote-controlled cargo ship emerged from the early-morning mist and approached Tracy Island. The _Lucile_ was a private vessel belonging to the Tracy family. On board were the five Tracy brothers - Scott, Virgil, John, Gordon and Alan. Professor Hiram Hackenbacker (aka Brains) was also aboard as was Heidi Rowley. She was a close friend of the family who ran the supply base on Moratoa Island located several miles North of Tracy Island. All had come for Kyrano's funeral and had brought a specially-made coffin for him with them. The _Lucile_ was also carrying some metal containers. Daniel was confused as he watched the ship approach the special quay on the Eastern-tip of the island. He was not aware that they were due to receive another shipment of spares for the Thunderbird machines.

Daniel greeted the brothers, Brains and Heidi warmly. "Good to see you all again," he said. "I'm sorry it's not under happier circumstances."

"We were going to be paying a visit soon anyway," Scott said. "We've got all your Christmas presents aboard as well."

Daniel gulped. In all the sadness that had surrounded Kyrano's passing, they'd all forgotten that there was only five days left until Christmas.

"Don't worry," said Virgil to Daniel. "This will all be over before Christmas Eve."

Daniel smiled weakly. "Thank you, Virgil," said Daniel. "I'm guessing that the presents are in those containers?"

"Er, n-no, actually," said Brains. "These are for Jodie."

Daniel frowned. But before he could answer, Jodie appeared. "Project Shadow?" she asked.

"Indeed," said Brains. "This seemed the b-b-best time to bring it to you."

Daniel looked at Jodie. He was a little annoyed that a trip that was meant to be primarily for Kyrano's funeral had been used to ship a secret project they'd been working on for some time to the island.

"Relax, Mr Tracy," said Jodie. "You'll understand my reasons on Christmas Day."

"Hmmm," said Daniel, not sounding entirely convinced. He turned back to the others. "Well then," he said. "Shall we begin?"

The first job was to dig the grave at the designated location as agreed by both Daniel and Karolina. The private area located between the mansion and the Cliff House overlooking Thunderbird 2's hangar entrance already had three memorial stones positioned at the far end of the lawn. The middle one was for Robert Tracy, the father of Kerry and Daniel and Zoë's husband. He had also been the brother of Jeff Tracy, father of the brothers. The one on the left-side facing the lawn was for Liz Tracy, Daniel's wife and mother of the five sisters. On the right was the one for Amber Tracy, Daniel and Kerry's younger sister. Robert Tracy had died of cancer ten years earlier. But the loss of Amber and Liz was very painful for Daniel's side of the family. Liz had been against the idea of Daniel and their daughters being involved with International Rescue. Things had gotten so bad that when Daniel went out for a drive to clear his mind, Liz tried packing the girls' clothes and when Amber discovered this, Liz informed her that she was going to leave Daniel and take the girls with her. Amber, being fiercely loyal to Daniel tried desperately to stop her. An infuriated Liz grabbed Robert's old hunting rifle and in the following struggle, it had gone off. The bullet went into the kitchen and hit the gas cooker. This caused an explosion which completely destroyed their old Kansas home. Kerry and Zoë had already got the girls outside following Amber's warning but were helpless as the explosion claimed both Amber and Liz's lives. That day was not one that any of the family discussed or thought about if they could help it.

None of the bodies that the memorial stones were for were on Tracy Island so the lawn was the ideal spot for Kyrano to be buried. For the rest of the day, the five brothers and five sisters worked in shifts to dig the perfectly rectangular grave for which the coffin would be placed in.

"Phew!" exclaimed Alan, wiping the sweat off his face. "This is thirsty work!"

"Yeah," agreed Gordon. "Where are the beers?"

"Knock it off, both of you!" barked Scott. "No celebration drinks until after the funeral. And no, Alan, you're too young."

Alan scowled as he went back to his digging.

John came over to Scott. "Alan is sixteen, you know," he whispered.

"Trust you to defend him, John," Scott replied. "You remember what happened the last time he had a drink."

"Oh, yes," said Scott. "Wrote it off."

"Not until he's eighteen," Scott said firmly.

"So another thirteen years to go then," teased Virgil.

"HEY!" Alan cried out indignantly.

The five sisters had been resting by the pool. They could hear Alan's indignant splutter and couldn't help but smile slightly. Being in the Southern hemisphere meant that December on Tracy Island was the middle of summer so a typical English Christmas which they had been used to growing up was impossible.

"Look at it," Laura said nodding towards the beach. "I'll still never get used to it properly."

"What, playing beachball at Christmas?" asked Adrienne. "Come now, Laura. We know that Jodie will do hers and Brains' party trick again."

"I hardly so how it'll improve spirits," said Wizzy sadly. "It's not going to do much to lift Karolina's."

"Maybe not," said Laura. "But I'm going to enjoy seeing Leanna's reaction to it."

"Oh, of course!" said Beth, a small grin creeping across her face. "I'd forgotten that this year will be Leanna's first Christmas with us."

"She'd probably freak out if she saw snow," remarked Katie.

Laura glanced at her watch. "Come on. Let's get back and help," she said.

Whilst the digging of the grave commenced outside, a more moving task was taking place inside. Daniel, Rosie and Karolina were getting ready to put Kyrano's body into the beautifully crafted oak coffin that had been made especially for him. Heidi, Joanne and Zoë were giving the coffin a very strong polish so that it gleamed in the sunlight shining through the windows. Leanna, Cassidy and Sian were allowed to watch the varnishing but had been forbidden to see Kyrano's body.

"There," Heidi said stepping back. "That's my side completed."

"I'm done as well," said Joanne.

Zoë had been doing the ends of the coffin. There had been not as much for her to do so she had already finished. As she washed her hands in the kitchen sink, her watch beeped. It was Daniel calling. "Yes, Daniel, it is finished," she said.

"Very good," said Daniel. "We'll come and get it."

A few minutes later, Daniel and Jodie arrived.

"Shouldn't Scott and his brothers be doing this?" asked Leanna.

"They've got their job to do," said Daniel. "And we've got ours." He took hold of part of the coffin. Jodie, Joanne and Heidi helped as they lifted it up off the dining table and carried it out into the main hallway. It was a bit of a squeeze to fit it and them into the elevator to go down one floor to the Sick Bay.

"No, you stay here," Zoë told Cassidy. "This is no sight for you, young lady."

Cassidy's heart sank. She hadn't seen Kyrano since he had passed away. The closest that she, Leanna or Sian had got was the viewing gallery. And only then, they had seen him from a distance.

"We're not going to get to say 'goodbye' properly, are we?" asked Sian tearfully.

Zoë patted her on the shoulder. "The funeral tomorrow will allow us all to say it, hun," she promised.

December 23rd 2068. The day of Kyrano Belargant's funeral had come. The British side of the Tracy family, their American cousins, the three O'Connors, Jodie, Heidi and Rosie joined Karolina in mourning. Even Kerry had come down from Thunderbird 5. She was due to come down anyway to spend Christmas with her family.

Everyone stood by the freshly-dug grave to await the coffin. Virgil played a portable keyboard with the notes tuned to resemble a church organ. As he did this, the coffin slowly began to approach. Scott, Gordon and John carried the right-side of the coffin whilst Beth, Laura and Katie carried the left. Walking a few paces behind were Karolina and Daniel. Zoë, Kerry, Adrienne, Wizzy, Leanna, Sian, Cassidy and Joanne stood on the left side of the grave with Alan, Virgil, Brains, Jodie, Rosie and Heidi on the right. Even MAX the robot had come out to say his farewells. Everyone was dressed in their best clothes. They had black on. Even the weather had turned funeral-like with grey clouds and rain falling. Virtually everyone had umbrellas with Alan having to hold his over Virgil.

"Where's Lady Penelope?" Cassidy whispered to Wizzy. "Wasn't she invited?"

"She didn't know Kyrano like the rest of us did," Wizzy whispered back. "And besides, Parker never got on with him so I think she was worried he might be disrespectful."

Adrienne snorted. "Parker's a strange character, yes," she said. "But he's not disrespectful."

"Shhh!" hissed Joanne, Zoë and Kerry.

The girls fell silent as the coffin was placed on metal jacks placed inside the grave. Scott, Gordon and John took three steps back to stand with their brothers. Beth, Katie and Laura did the same to stand with their sisters, Grandma and Aunt. Karolina stood at the bottom end of the coffin whilst Daniel walked round to the top. There was silence as everyone waited for Daniel to speak.

"I first met Kyrano seven years ago when Jeff Tracy and I were lost in Malaysia after the aircraft we were testing crashed," Daniel began. "With our radio equipment lost, we needed somewhere to shelter from the fierce storms that had most likely contributed to the aircraft's loss. We stumbled across a village overlooking the South China Sea. at first, they seemed hostile, but one man settled them. This man was Kyrano. He took us into his house. That is where we were introduced to his daughter Karolina."

Karolina, who had been looking at the coffin, lifted her head to look at Daniel.

"We were hurt from the escape," Daniel continued. "Jeff had come off the worse by getting entangled in a tree. I then injured my shoulder trying to retrieve him from it. Kyrano and Karolina saw to this and used all of their skills to make us better. It was during this time that we witnessed the destruction of the ferry _Cambodia_ and the loss of over three-hundred souls who had had no time to escape. Jeff, Kyrano, Karolina and I rallied the other villagers and did what we could to help but there was virtually nothing we could have done. It was at that point that we decided something needed to be done, and it was not long after that we were found by Scott and Virgil. We then started making our plans for International Rescue, but sadly, not everyone in our family got to see our dream realised. Jeff being one of them."

Zoë, Kerry, Laura, Katie, Beth, Adrienne and Wizzy closed their eyes. They knew he was referring to Liz and Amber.

"As we gathered the resources and friends that we would need to make International Rescue a reality, I decided to return to the Malaysian village and offer Kyrano and Karolina the chance to join us," Daniel went on. "And a good job we did as well for we found the village under siege from some unknown businessman. Only now can I assume that this person was none other than Kyrano's brother Trangh Belargant, who Kyrano only revealed in his final moments to be none other than The Hood - a criminal who has been causing trouble for us in recent years. He also revealed to me that his brother had some kind of unexplained hypnotic influence over him which after several years must have finally taken its toll, especially after I ordered his brother to leave the island for snooping around. Despite all this however, Kyrano was a great man. One of the best I have ever come to know. And I was proud to have him as part of our household. He was be missed, but never forgotten."

That was all he needed to say. Nobody else had anything to say. Daniel and Karolina had been the ones to know him the best, but Karolina was too upset to say anything. She simply walked around the side of the coffin and stopped briefly to lay the flowers on the top. Then one by one, Zoë, Wizzy, Cassidy, Heidi and even MAX came forward to place flowers that they'd chosen onto the top of the coffin.

Daniel looked at Karolina as she came to stand beside him. Looking at her face, it was difficult to tell apart the tears from the raindrops. _Poor Karolina_ , he thought to himself. Then he looked at the coffin. _Don't worry, Kyrano. We'll take care of her_. He then nodded to Karolina. With a shaking hand, she reached over to press the button that would lower the coffin into the grave. But she didn't look as though she could do it. So he put his hand on the top. They looked at each other. He nodded. She then nodded, and together they pushed the button. Virgil began to play again as the jacks slowly began to lower the coffin into the grave.

"Goodbye, Father," Karolina was heard to say in a very low voice. Then she turned and grabbed hold of Daniel sobbing into his black jacket. He placed his arms around her and hugged her tightly. He was almost in tears himself as he watched the coffin slowly disappear from view.

Once the coffin was fully lowered, two specially built hatch covers that had been placed by Brains on the sides of the grave closed up sealing it from the rain. On the top was some freshly-placed grass to blend in with the rest of the lawn. Once sealed, it could never be reopened.

As Daniel continued to hug Karolina, he could feel a new emotion burning from inside. It was almost a form of hatred. "You'll pay for this, Belargant," he muttered to himself. "Project Shadow will see to that."

With the burial ceremony completed, everyone returned to the mansion, not only to dry off but to have a party. Not one with balloons and games, but the kind to celebrate Kyrano and have food and drink. Karolina got a lot of attention, especially from the girls, Alan and Gordon. Daniel watched her closely. Even though she smiled a few times, he could tell she was forcing herself to do it.

"She's not going to get over this anytime soon, is she?" Kerry remarked. She too had noticed it.

"Nope," agreed Daniel. "I doubt we'll see her smile properly for a very long time."

Scott walked past and caught the end of what they'd been saying. "Oh, I don't know," he said. "There's a chance she will be when she sees Project Shadow." He walked off with his drink.

Kerry frowned. "Project Shadow?" she asked. "What's that?"

"Something that Jodie and I have been working on," Daniel replied. "It's a closely guarded secret that will be revealed hopefully on Christmas Day."

"Okay…" said Kerry. "But what's this got to do with Karolina?"

Daniel winked. "Wait and see," he said mysteriously. He then went to talk to Heidi. She too had had a bit to do with Project Shadow.

"That was a good speech you made," Heidi complimented.

"I did what I could," said Daniel. "I know this probably wasn't the correct way to do a funeral, but it is the way Kyrano would have wanted."

"You still did good," Heidi said. "He'd have been proud."

Daniel nodded. "Did you get to perform all the tests on Project Shadow?" he asked.

"Yes, and all were successful," Heidi said. "Brains and I were going to keep her for a little longer but when we heard about Kyrano, we felt now might be the better time to bring it here. She is more than ready."

Daniel smiled. "Thank you, Heidi," he said. "I just hope it's what Karolina needs to get that gorgeous smile of hers back."

Kerry had taken the opportunity to make a quick call to EOS. Being the Christmas season, Kaylee, Katrina and Kelly were given time off to spend with their families leaving EOS in charge of Thunderbird 5. She had been instructed to watch the airwaves and report any potential disasters to them. They were lucky in that they had not been called out once since just before Kyrano's passing. In fact, hardly anyone had been down to even see the ships so they were currently somewhat neglected. However, they were all getting a feeling that it wouldn't last for long.

"How are things up there, EOS?" Kerry asked.

" _All is quiet up here, Kerry,_ " EOS answered. " _And down there, too. I can't see any signs of any issues anywhere on the planet._ "

"Just because there isn't any signs of a situation doesn't mean one can't just happen out of the blue," Kerry said. "What's the global weather like?"

" _Mostly dry,_ " said EOS. " _However, Central and Eastern Europe have got some bad storms. However I am not detecting any major issues. Poland, Germany, Estonia and Western Russia all seem to be coping well. It is also heading North-West across the Baltic Sea towards Finland and Sweden._ "

"Keep that as your primary focus," Kerry said. "Hopefully nothing will come from it, but one can't be too careful."

" _F-A-B,_ " said EOS. " _I will let you know the instant I hear anything out of the ordinary._ "

The storm across Europe was causing some issues, but none that the local Emergency Services could not handle. Some localised flooding, fallen trees and damaged power-cables were the usual results of fierce storms. Several people had taken shelter in specially built underground bunkers so they had good protection. However, for those at sea in the Baltic, things weren't as good. The high winds created heavy seas which tossed even the largest of ships about causing great amounts of seasickness.

Among the ships sailing across the Baltic was the _Stockholm_. She was a large car and passenger ferry that linked the Estonian Capital of Tallinn with the Swedish Capital Stockholm. She and her sister ship Tallinn made the crossing every day in opposite directions every day. It was now December 24th where the _Stockholm_ was sailing and it had only just gone midnight. A good number of the passengers were up late trying to enjoy the entertainment but it was difficult because of the ship being rocked about by the storm. Several were already inside their cabins trying to sleep. Most of them were feeling seasick. Several still up were also feeling it but had decided to brave it. Even the five female dancers and four male band-members in the ship's main lounge were finding it difficult.

The _Stockholm_ had been sailing for nearly six hours and was heading for her namesake city in Sweden. She was already nearing the halfway point, but this was no comfort for the people onboard for the weather was showing no signs of improving. Captain Malkovich was concerned for the safety of his ship and passengers. He knew that storms like this could easily cause havoc if things got out of hand. "Have you got any good news for me then?" he asked Second Officer Keynman.

"Not really, Captain," Keynman replied. "The forecast shows no improvement and it's getting worse. Wind speed is already twenty-five knots."

Captain Malkovich looked out of the bridge's large windows at the heavy sea. "At least the stabilisers are helping to keep the ship steady," he said. "But they'll slow us down even more, and we're an hour behind schedule already. Keep her at fourteen knots or we'll be here all night."

It was very important they tried to keep on time for the ferries had a strict schedule. They always had twelve hour crossings with the same amount of time in port. This enabled all the vehicles and passengers to disembark and then for the crew to give the ship a good clean-out and have a rest before the next load arrived.

"At least they all seem happy down below," said Keynman.

The Captain chuckled. "Yes, but wait until they've had a bit more to drink," he said.

The _Stockholm_ was only half-full on this crossing. This included both passengers and crew. Among the many in the lounge were two Swedish men. One of them was Kent Harstedt, but the motion of the ferry was dampening his fun.

"Are you sure I can't get you anything?" the barman asked. "How about a glass of beer or wine?"

"No, thanks," Kent replied. "I don't feel too well. I'm swaying enough already and I haven't even had a drink." He and his friend turned to watch the dancers. One of them almost toppled over as one of the waiters dropped his tray causing several glasses to smash onto the floor. This was due to a big wave having just hit the side of the ferry.

"They'll be offering free champagne soon," joked Kent's friend.

But Kent didn't see the funny side. "Is this usual?" he asked. "Is it normally as rough as this?" He then looked back at the dancers, trying to take his mind off things. "I'm amazed they can even stand up," he said.

One of the dancers was Estonian Anneli Konnrad. For her, this voyage was the first time that she'd worked on a ship, and she was excited to be performing. But inside she was also feeling uneasy due to the rolling of the ship. Earlier in the evening she had fallen over and nearly landed on the drum-kit. Soon her performance came to an end and she headed backstage with her fellow dancers whilst the boys in the band continued to play.

"It wasn't at all how I expected it to be," Anneli joked as she put her regular clothes back on over her dancing outfit "I kept losing my footing!"

"Me too!" said one of the others. "I thought I was going to fall over!"

"Is it always going to be like this?" asked Anneli.

"I hope not," a third one said. "Because I really will break a leg, and that would be bad luck!"

A few decks below was where a number of cabins were located. In one of them was another Estonian crew-member, Hele Mottus, one of the duty-free shop workers. Earlier in the day, she'd learnt that she was pregnant and knew she was going to have to quit her job. She had always had a fear of storms and had quickly gotten herself into bed. A few doors down was Mikael Oun, a Swedish Truck driver. He was struggling to sleep due to the wind and the motion of the ship. He had felt seasick all evening. He was also worrying about his truck for he could not remember seeing if it had been secured to the deck.

Anneli left her fellow dancers at the bar and headed down to drop her belongings off in her cabin. Up until this point she had not paid too much attention to the storm, but now she was on her own, it became more noticeable. She had difficulty holding onto the handrails as she went down the stairs. Once she almost lost her footing but managed to save herself. She soon reached the deck that her cabin was located which was one above the vast car deck. It was at this point that she heard something rather disconcerting.

BANG-BANG! BANG-BANG!

Whatever it was was quite loud because it had woken several already unsettled passengers up. Hele and Mikael were among them. Anneli was also slightly freaked out by the sound of several vehicle alarms going off caused by the motion. She sprinted to her cabin and slammed the door behind her. The banging could still just be heard but it wasn't as loud as it had been seconds earlier. And then it went quiet. Anneli hastily undressed and climbed into her bed. She shut her eyes tightly hoping that the motion would rock her to sleep.

The _Stockholm's_ current Watch Officer had also heard the strange banging noise and had made his way down to the car deck to investigate. But when he reached it, he could see nothing out of the ordinary. All of the cars, vans and lorries were still in their positions securely fastened to the deck. The noise appeared to have come from the very front of the ship. The car deck was protected by a lifting bow called a visor. Behind this was a large watertight door to help keep the sea out of the four-lane car deck.

The Officer was about to leave when the banging noise started again. It was a metallic banging which gave him a little cause for concern. He hurried to the nearest phone to report to the bridge.

"Yes?" Keynman's voice answered.

"I'm on the car deck," the Watch Officer reported. "There's just been one hell of a bang down here."

"Can you see anything?" Keynman asked. "Are all the locks in place?"

"I can't see anything wrong," the Watch Officer said.

"Go and check it out," instructed Keynman.

The Watch Officer put the phone down and headed towards the forward doors.

BANG-BANG! BANG-BANG!

Hele had got herself up out of bed. She opened her cabin door and looked around. Several others were also looking out trying to work out what the noise was.

"What is going on?" asked Mikael who was yet another to open his cabin door.

"One of the vehicles must have broken loose in the storm I reckon," said one of the other passengers.

"I'm sure the deck crew will sort it out," Hele said trying to sound reassuring. "Let's try and get some sleep, shall we?"

On the bridge, Keynman had informed Captain Malkovich of the mysterious noise. The two men looked at the footage of the CCTV cameras of the car deck but they could not see anything wrong. The cameras could not record sound so it was not possible for them to hear it for themselves.

"Keep your eyes and ears open for any more reports," Captain Malkovich said to Keynman. "Let me know immediately if he finds anything."

Captain Malkovich's duty had come to an end and he was due for some rest. He left the bridge leaving Keynman in charge. But what nobody knew was that the locking pins that held the visor in place had been badly damaged by the waves. As the _Stockholm_ swayed in the heavy seas, each hit weakened it.

Then, it happened. There was a loud BANG followed by a screech of tearing metal as one giant wave smashed into the visor from below ripping it clean off. The force of the wave threw it up into the front of the superstructure just below the bridge. The impact sent a shockwave that ran right through the ship. Anyone standing was knocked off their feet. Everyone who had managed to get to sleep was woken up and anyone who had been sitting on stools or chairs that weren't fixed to the floor were thrown out. The lights flickered but remained on.

Silence filled the ship with everyone looking at each other trying to work out what had just happened.

Captain Malkovich quickly returned to the bridge to find all his officers except for the helmsman at the windows looking outside. "What the hell was that?" he asked.

"I don't know, sir!" replied Keynman. "Something hit the underside of the bridge but we can't see what it was."

Captain Malkovich looked out but he too couldn't see anything. It was too dark.

Then the phone rang. "Yes?" answered Keynman. He listened carefully, and the colour began to drain from his skin. "Captain, it's the Watch Officer. He's saying there's water coming under the watertight door!"

"What?!" exclaimed Captain Malkovich. "How?!"

The Fifth Officer had been scanning the CCTV footage. "My God, he's right - look!" he exclaimed.

Captain Malkovich and the other officers stared at the screens. There was indeed water pouring into the car deck. It appeared to be coming from the bottom left corner of the watertight door. The Watch Officer had almost been swept away by the water but had managed to save himself and make it back to the phone.

As the water continued to gush in, the weight suddenly began to cause the ferry to list over to port. The passengers began to get very worried. They and the rest of the crew now realised something was very wrong.

"How is that water getting in?" asked Captain Malkovich. "That door's meant to be watertight!"

But Keynman, who'd been looking out of the windows had noticed something very disturbing. "Sir, look at this!"

Captain Malkovich came over and looked out. "What?" he asked. "I can't see anything."

"Exactly!" cried Kenyman. "The visor's gone!"

Silence fell across the bridge. Captain Malkovich stared. Now he realised what Keynman meant. There was nothing there. The visor had completely gone.

The ship lurched and began to list further causing several passengers to start panicking.

"Stop the engines!" Captain Malkovich ordered. "Sound the General Emergency Signal!"

The helmsman quickly sent the signal to the engine room to cut the engines whilst Keynman pressed a yellow button on one of the control panels. This button sounded the signal that nobody wanted to hear. HONK! HONK! HONK! HONK! HONK! HONK! HONK! HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONK!

This signal consisting of seven short blasts followed by one long blast on the ship's whistle and alarms told everyone to return to their cabins, grab any warm clothing and their lifejackets and proceed immediately to the deck where the lifeboats were located.

"I think we need to go," Kent Harstedt told his friend. They swiftly exited the show lounge along with everybody else who was in their.

Hele had been fully trained as one of the many Stairway Guides in event of something going wrong. She jumped out of bed when she heard the signal and hastily put on as many clothes as she could as well as her lifejacket. She needed to help organise the evacuation should it become necessary to abandon ship, which at the rate the _Stockholm_ was listing, that wasn't going to be very long.

"We're going to need assistance," Captain Malkovich said to Keynman. "Get out a mayday, now!"

"Aye, sir!" replied Keynman. He grabbed the radio microphone. "Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! This is the Stockholm. Our visor has broken away and we're taking on water! We need immediate assistance! Over!"

Daniel and the girls watched from the window of the lounge as the Tracy family's private jet lifted off from the runway. It was being flown by Heidi and she was taking the Tracy brothers and Brains back to the States.

"Well I guess that's it," said Adrienne. "It's all over."

"What now?" asked Wizzy. Now that they'd gone, it all seemed very quiet.

"There's still all the Christmas decorations to put up," said Zoë. "That should keep us all busy."

"We can do that tomorrow, can't we?" asked Sian. "I feel very sleepy."

Joanne looked at her watch. "It is getting late and we've all had a long day," she said. "Perhaps an early supper and bed is what we all need."

Karolina stood up. "If you don't mind, I'm going to go to bed now," she said.

Everyone understood this. It had been hardest for Karolina so they felt no desire to ask anything of her. "Night, Karolina," they all said. But Karolina did not reply. She walked out of the lounge with her head down and eyes closed.

"Poor thing," said Laura. "I wish there was something we could do to make her happy again."

Katie scoffed. "I doubt she'll ever be happy again," she remarked.

"Katie!" snapped Zoë. "That is no way to speak about anyone!"

Before anyone could say anything else, an alarm rang out making everyone jump.

"Red alert! Red alert! Red alert!" the computer voice rang out.

"What the?" exclaimed Cassidy.

Kerry, Daniel and Jodie hurried over to the desk. There was an incoming call from Thunderbird 5.

"Go ahead, EOS," said Kerry.

" _Sorry to disturb you, everyone,_ " EOS's voice said from the computer. " _I am picking up a distress call from a ship in the Baltic Sea._ "

"What kind of ship?" Daniel asked.

" _I believe it is a car ferry,_ " EOS said. " _One called the_ Stockholm."

"Can you play us the message?" asked Kerry.

EOS did so. What they heard sent chills down their spines. " _Mayday! Mayday! This is the_ Stockholm _! We are sinking! I repeat - we are sinking! Can anyone hear me? Over!_ "

"Shit!" exclaimed Daniel. "Sinking car ferry. That's not good."

"We need to get out there," said Laura.

"Don't be silly!" retorted Adrienne. "That's right on the opposite side of the world!"

"She's right," agreed Katie. "We'd never get there in time."

"To hell with that!" snapped Wizzy. "We can't just sit here!"

"Agreed," said Daniel. "We'd still get there before any other ship could. So let's move!"

Daniel's word was final. Laura went over to the revolving wall panel whilst Daniel headed over to the painting. Rosie, Beth, Wizzy and a rather reluctant Katie and Adrienne hurried off to the express elevators. Jodie and Kerry positioned themselves at the desk to monitor the operation.

As Daniel entered the cockpit of Thunderbird 2 and sat himself down in his seat, he used the computer to select Pod 4. As they would be dealing with a situation at sea, there was a strong possibility that Thunderbird 4 might be needed so it was best to take it with them. He had wondered whether the Heavy-Lifting Gear in Pod 3 would be best but he decided on Pod 4 instead.

Once everyone was aboard, Thunderbird 2 headed out of its vast hangar onto the runway. Once again the palm trees fell back to allow it to pass before being lifted up on its ramp to face the sky. By the time it was ready, the swimming pool had opened up with Thunderbird 1 arriving into position ready for launch.

5…4…3…2…1!

The engines of Thunderbirds 1 and 2 roared into life before they lifted off from their respective launch pad and ramp and into the darkened grey sky above the Pacific Ocean. The rain was still falling having not let up since before the funeral.

"Thunderbirds are go!" said Daniel. "Kerry, does EOS have eyes on the ferry?"

"EOS is moving Thunderbird 5 over the area now," Kerry answered over the radio. "Should have it any second now."

Even though Thunderbird 5 had its incredibly powerful long-range scanners, they were not much use if the object it was targeting was on the opposite side of the world. EOS programmed the space-station's powerful thrusters to send it rocketing high above the Earth towards the source of the 'Mayday' call. As it approached, the thrusters activated the braking maneuvers bringing it into a geostationary orbit above the Baltic.

" _Thunderbird 5 is in position,_ " EOS announced. " _Commencing long-range scan of the area._ "

Kerry and Jodie waited at the desk. Then the image appeared. They gasped. So did Joanne, Cassidy and Sian when they saw it.

"Good grief!" exclaimed Kerry. "Thunderbirds 1 and 2, what is your ETA to the danger zone?"

"Thunderbird 1 ETA - ten minutes," said Laura.

"Thunderbird 2 will be ten minutes later," added Katie.

Kerry and Jodie looked at each other.

"The ship's almost on its side," said Jodie. "They won't have ten minutes unless you get there now!"

"Understood," said Daniel. "Thunderbird 1, we're engaging after-burners. I suggest you do the same."

"F-A-B," Laura replied. "After-burners to maximum!"

The two Thunderbird ships rocketed faster than they'd ever gone before using their reverse power. This was risky, but they knew it was a chance they needed to take.

The _Stockholm_ was now at a thirty-five degree list to port. The heavy seas were pushing up against it, almost in a way preventing it from capsizing. However, with the amount of water seeping in, it would only be a matter of time before it went over. And the evacuation hadn't even commenced yet.

"Put as much ballast into the starboard tanks as you can!" Captain Malkovich ordered the men in the engine room.

"It won't make much difference, Captain!" the Chief Engineer shouted back. "She's already too near to the P-O-N-R!"

"I know that, but we have to try!" Captain Malkovich said sharply. He then spoke to Keynman. "What state are the passengers in?"

"Not good, sir," Keynman replied. "They're being handed off life-jackets and heading for the boats."

Captain Malkovich looked at the list indicator. "If we don't start soon, we'll be too far over to even get any in the water!" he said.

Hele had joined her fellow crewmembers in guiding the terrified passengers up to the boat deck. Quite a few had been woken up by crewmembers just to make them aware of the danger and instruct them to leave their cabins. Several had had to be dragged from their rooms when they'd tried to pack their belongings.

Among the passengers making their way up the heavily tilted staircases was the Lingstrom family from Sweden. Magnus, the 19-year-old son had been sharing a cabin with his girlfriend Katrina. His parents had been in the one next door. As they made their way up, Katerina suddenly froze in fear when the ship lurched again.

"Katrina, come on," Magnus said. "We must get to the boats."

"No, no, no!" Katerina wailed. "I can't. You go!"

But Magnus grabbed her hand and dragged her up the stairs towards the exit on the starboard-side. It was already crowded as crewmembers did what they could to get people into the lifeboats and rafts. Anneli and Hele were also on the starboard side helping people get into Lifeboat Number Seven located towards the stern. Anneli had some basic training for this, but Hele was more experienced and so was in charge.

However, it soon became clear to everyone that their chances of escaping the sinking ship weren't good for the list was becoming too great. For those on the port-side, they were very close to the water, but weren't as they weren't fully loaded, they couldn't be launched yet. It didn't help that being so close to the water was now causing passengers to panic. On the starboard-side, the problem was very different. Due to the angle, it would be impossible to even lower the boats for they would simply land on the side of the hull.

"Oh, my God, we're going to die!" sobbed Katerina after she, Magnus and his parents boarded Lifeboat Number One.

Rolf Sorman, another truck driver, had found himself a different problem when he first came out onto the boat deck. Not all the passengers seemed anxious to get off straight away. A group of young men turned out to be muggers and looters who were ambushing passengers and stealing valuables from them. In Rolf's case, it was his gold chain they took. None of the crewmembers seemed to have realised what was happening for they were all too busy ushering the others into the lifeboats.

"GET OFF ME, YOU MORONS!" Rolf bellowed as he struggled against the looters.

"SHUT UP!" one of them shouted and punched him.

However, this drew the attention of one of the senior officers. He and six other crewmembers now saw what was happening and rushed in to help. More joined in, and so did some of the stronger passengers.

Suddenly, a loud horn blared through the air. Everyone on the ship went silent. Then they all started to look for the ship that it belonged to. However, nobody could see any lights anywhere.

"Where is it?" asked Anneli.

"I don't see anything!" shouted Mikael.

Then above the howl of the wind came the sound of aircraft engines. This was followed by a powerful searchlight being shone down from above. Everyone looked up to see Thunderbird 1 approaching.

"It's International Rescue!" shouted Magnus excitedly.

All of a sudden, everyone began to feel some sense of relief. Surely, they thought, International Rescue would find some way to get them all off safely.

Laura surveyed the scene. "Base and Thunderbird 2 from Thunderbird 1. I'm over the Stockholm. This is bad."

"We're two minutes away," Daniel answered. "How far over is the ferry?"

"Almost on its side," Laura replied. "None of the lifeboats have been deployed. The angle is too steep."

"Then we'll have to correct that," said Daniel. "Jodie, could Thunderbird 2 lift the ship upright?"

"If you can somehow stop water flooding in and not burn out your vertical thrusters, you might be able to," Jodie said. "However, I don't see how you'd be able to pull that off."

"Wizzy, get down to Thunderbird 4," Daniel said. "See if you can find where the breach is."

"F-A-B, Dad," said Wizzy. She unfastened her seatbelt and hurried from the cockpit.

"What about us?" asked Adrienne. "Is there anything Beth and I can do?"

"Yes, providing we can get the ship as upright as possible, I'll need you two to go aboard the ship and make sure that if anyone is still inside and alive then you must get them out. If all the lifeboats have been gone, we shall winch them up with The Chairs."

Beth and Adrienne nodded in agreement. "We'll get ready," said Beth as she and Adrienne also left the cockpit.

Rosie frowned at Daniel. "With all due respect, Mr Tracy," she said. "What you've asked them to do is very dangerous. Are you sure about it?"

Katie scoffed. "We're a rescue organisation, Rosie," she said. "Taking risks is what we do."

"I know that, Katie," said Rosie. "But in view of what's happened recently, don't you…"

"They know the risks, Rosie," Daniel said. "There's around a thousand people down there who will die if we don't try and help them."

Rosie fell silent. She wasn't comfortable, but she knew Daniel was right. Fire-fighters would always go into burning buildings looking for anyone still trapped. This was not that much different.

"There they are," said Katie.

Daniel and Rosie looked ahead. They could just make out the lights of the sinking car ferry with those from Thunderbird 1 hovering just above.

"The sea's still rough," Daniel observed. "We'll have to pick-up the pod again once Thunderbird 4 has launched otherwise we might lose it."

Thunderbird 2 then slowed down and dropped in height until it was just above the waves. "We're here, Thunderbird 4," Daniel said. "Get ready for launching."

"F-A-B, Dad," Wizzy replied from the cockpit of the small yellow submersible. "I'm ready."

Katie released the docking clamp which dropped the pod out from Thunderbird 2. It hit the water hard and began to sway from side-to-side. The door then opened and the extending ramp that Thunderbird 4 was on moved into position. Once ready, Wizzy fired up Thunderbird 4's engines and raced down the ramp into the sea.

"Thunderbird 4 is go!" said Wizzy, immediately heading towards the _Stockholm_.

The door of Pod 4 closed up again and Katie used clamps from Thunderbird 2 to lift it back up again so they could go over and assist in the operation.

"How are we going to do this?" Katie asked.

"We'll use the cables," said Daniel. "Drop them into the water so that Thunderbird 4 can attach them to the hull."

Jodie then spoke up. "Mr Tracy, attaching the clamps to the sides won't be enough," she said. "If there is to be any chance of lifting it, you'll need to have the cables running right underneath the ship and attached to the opposite side. There's a chance that could work."

"Just a chance?" asked Daniel.

"Yes…" said Jodie not sounding too sure. "There's also a possibility that the cables could cut through the ship depending on how weak the rest of the ship is."

"That's…good to know," remarked Daniel as Thunderbird 2 maneuvered over the top of the ship. "Did you get that, Thunderbird 4?"

"I sure did, Thunderbird 2," Wizzy replied. "I'm approaching the port-side of the ship now."

"Can you see the breach, Wizzy?" asked Kerry.

Wizzy shone Thunderbird 4's powerful lights onto the hull of the _Stockholm_. "Negative," she said. "I can only see the port-side of the ship. Most of it's submerged."

"The water's almost reached the boat deck on the port-side and the bridge is almost submerged, too," said Laura. "If you're going to try and save it, you must do it now."

"Ready, Katie?" asked Daniel.

"Ready, Dad," Katie replied. "Dropping cables, Thunderbird 4."

A total of eight strong cables dropped out from the bottom of Thunderbird 2. Four of them came from the corners of the pod and the other four from the main body itself - two from under the nose and two from near the back of the craft. Wizzy waited until the left cable from the nose had dropped in front of her. She activated Thunderbird 4's two robotic arms and grabbed hold of the cable.

"Here goes," she said pushing Thunderbird 4's controls forwards. The little yellow craft ducked down and underneath the keel of the Stockholm and round to the other side. She pulled up until the cable was touching the bottom before attaching the magnetic clamp at the end to the hull. "One down, seven to go," she said as she grabbed the second cable from the nose and pulled that underneath as well.

Laura was watching the scene carefully. She knew that Thunderbird 4 was fast and nimble, but would it be enough to get all the clamps attached before the ship capsized completely. "Come on, Wizzy. Come on," she muttered.

"Two down," Wizzy announced. "Going attach the middle four."

Nobody said a word. Daniel and Katie did what they could to keep Thunderbird 2 as still as possible in the high winds whilst Rosie sat behind Daniel. In the lounge on Tracy Island, Jodie and Kerry carefully watched the operation on the live video feed from Thunderbird 5 whilst Joanne, Sian and Cassidy sat nearby. The silence was almost unbearable as they waited for Thunderbird 4 to complete its task.

Attaching cables to a sinking ship might not have been the first thing people would've thought of, but by the time Thunderbird 4 had attached the first six clamps, they started to notice a difference. The _Stockholm_ was still listing hard to the left, but as Captain Malkovich and his officers had noticed from the indicator, the list was no longer increasing.

"My God!" exclaimed Keynman. "It's working!"

"Gentlemen, we may have a chance, after all," said Captain Malkovich. He had been prepared to accept his fate and go down with the ship, but now it looked as though they all had a chance of survival, providing that the cables held long enough.

It took a good eight minutes for Thunderbird 4 to attach all of the cables, but at last, the job was complete. "All cables secure," Wizzy reported.

"Well done, Wizzy," said Daniel. "Now, let's see if we can get this baby upright."

"Hold it a second, Thunderbird 2!" Kerry said abruptly. "We still haven't located the breach yet. Any sudden movements could cause further flooding. Thunderbird 4, you need to find that first."

"I'm on it, Kerry," said Wizzy. She moved Thunderbird 4 back and looked at the angles of the ferry. "I am going to guess it must be towards the front-end of the ship," she said. "There's more of that area underwater than there is at the stern." She moved Thunderbird 4 forwards and down to the very front of the ship. It wasn't hard for her to see what had happened. "Oh…my God!" she exclaimed. "The bow has gone!"

"Gone?" repeated Daniel. "But that's the door to the car deck!"

"There's still a door there," said Wizzy. "And it's…the bottom left-side corner had been partly ripped open! That's where the water's going in."

Jodie looked at video footage from Thunderbird 4's cameras. "Gosh!" she said. "Thunderbird 4, I think you might be able to fix that. Use the welding torch to seal it up. That should prevent any more water from entering."

"F-A-B!" said Wizzy. "Moving in now."

Thunderbird 4 inched closer to the damaged inner door. Wizzy used the right arm to grab hold of the ship to keep her craft in place whilst she would use the welding torch in the left arm to seal up the hole.

"How long, Thunderbird 4?" asked Daniel. "I think the passengers are starting wonder what the delay is."

"Give me about five minutes, Thunderbird 2," Wizzy replied. "It won't take much longer than that."

Daniel was right about the passengers. Their initial relief at the arrival of the Thunderbird machines had turned to confusion as to why they weren't doing anything.

"What are they playing at?" Anneli asked Hele. "Why aren't they helping us off?"

Laura's voice then called out over Thunderbird 1's tannoy-speaker. "Attention passengers and crew of the _Stockholm_. If you're wondering what the delay is, Thunderbird 4 is attempting to seal up the breach in your hull. It probably won't be enough to save the ship, but it'll enable us to right it long enough for your lifeboats to be launched. Please remain calm and patient. It won't take long."

Hele looked at Anneli. "There you go," she said with a smile.

Annelia nodded with satisfaction.

Wizzy was good with her prediction. It took her just under five minutes to put the damaged watertight door back into place and weld it shut. "There!" she said. "It's done." She released the other arm and reversed Thunderbird 4 away. "She's all yours, Thunderbird 2."

"F-A-B, Thunderbird 4," said Daniel. Now it was his turn to speak over a tannoy. " _Stockholm_ crew and passengers, we're about to commence lifting. Please hold tight."

Everyone did so. Daniel nodded to Katie who gently applied power to Thunderbird 2's vertical jets.

"Steady, Thunderbird 2," warned Laura as the cables tightened.

Wizzy kept Thunderbird 4 at a safe distance and watched carefully to make sure all the cables remained in place. It was lucky for them that the winds were dying down and the sea wasn't quite a rough as it had been when they first arrived. The rain too was also stopping.

The _Stockholm_ creaked and groaned as Thunderbird 2 pulled on the cables. At first it didn't move, but after a minor increase in power, it finally began to. Inch by inch, it slowly began to rise, but the water already on the car deck along with the vehicles made it very difficult.

Captain Malkovich became aware of this and contacted the engine room. "Chief, the front door of the car deck is sealed. Pump the water out and we might be able to save the ship."

"Yes, sir!" said the Chief Engineer. He turned to his fellow workers. "LADS, START THE PUMPS!" he shouted. "THIS OLD GIRL ISN'T GOING DOWN TONIGHT!"

The other engine room workers had been very uneasy about remaining at their posts for the flooded car deck was directly above them. They were lucky in that the other watertight doors had prevented it from reaching their emergency escape routes. With this new optimism, they quickly set to work turning on all the pumps that they could.

As Thunderbird 2 continued to lift the _Stockholm_ more upright, Adrienne and Beth used their grapple-guns to lower themselves down onto the boat decks. Beth dropped down onto the starboard-side whilst Adrienne landed on the port-side. The list was now only fifteen degrees to port now.

"I'm down," Beth said having landed first.

"Me too," Adrienne said seconds later."

Jodie then piped in again. "Mr Tracy, I've had a thought. If you hold the ship at its current position, the crew can then lower the lifeboats on the port-side. That way you'll only need to have it upright for the ones on the starboard-side."

"That's not a bad idea, Jodie," said Daniel. "Laura, can you get in touch with the captain and tell him about our suggestion?"

"You got it, Dad," said Laura. She moved Thunderbird 1 lower towards the water and hovered in front of the bridge. "Thunderbird 1 to _Stockholm_. Do you read me?"

Captain Malkovich grabbed the radio-mike. "Loud and clear, International Rescue," he said.

"Captain, we're going to hold the ship at its current angle for a bit," said Laura. "That'll enable you to launch the lifeboats on the port-side. Then Thunderbird 2 can right the ship for the ones on the starboard-side to be lowered."

"That's perfect!" Captain Malkovich said. "I'll issue the order immediately!" He then grabbed the mike for the ship's tannoy. "This is the Captain! Port-side lifeboats, abandon ship! Repeat - abandon ship!"

This news came as huge relief for the passengers in the lifeboats.

"At last!" said Rolf Sorman as his boat started to get winched over the side.

Laura moved Thunderbird 1 round to observe the ten port-side lifeboats get lowered down to the water. Adrienne watched from the deck-rail. One-by-one they touched down into the water and the crews detached the lowering cables before powering up their engines and pulling away from the ferry.

"That's all the boats on the port-side safely away," Adrienne reported to Daniel. "You can continue."

"Good," said Daniel. "Beth, tell everyone on your side to hold on again."

"Will do," Beth answered over the radio.

Thunderbird 2 began to pull on the cables again. The _Stockholm_ groaned even louder than before.

Wizzy maneuvered Thunderbird 4 around the submerged section of the hull making sure all the cables were still attached. "All cables still secure and holding," she reported.

Laura then noticed three new radar contacts on her screen. "Guys, I've got blips on my radar," she said. "One coming from the North-West, one from the East and one from the South-West."

"Could be rescue ships," Kerry said. "EOS said that the ship's emergency call was acknowledged by at least two other ships. One was the _Tallinn_."

"That's the _Stockholm's_ identical sister ship," said Daniel. "That is good new because there's no way we'd be able to transport everyone back to dryland in one trip."

Suddenly, there was a jolt and a red light appeared on Thunderbird 2's control screen.

"Damn it!" Katie said. "One of the lines has failed!"

"I see it, Katie," said Wizzy. "I'm going to reattach it for you."

"Thanks, Wizzy," said Katie. "Let's hope it's not damaged."

Wizzy activated Thunderbird 4's arms yet again and grabbed the loose cable. It had come off from the port-side of the ship so she had to dive underneath in order to put it back into place. "There, done," Wizzy said when she'd finished. "I'll double-check the others, just to be safe."

By now, the _Stockholm_ was at a good angle for the lifeboats on the starboard side to be launched.

"Captain, you can lower the rest of your boats now," said Laura.

"Understood," said Captain Malkovich. He then made his second and final announcement. "Captain to Starboard Lifeboat Crews. Abandon ship! I repeat - abandon ship!"

The cranes activated and began to lower the lifeboats one-by-one towards the water. They had a bigger distance to drop than the ones on the port-side had done, but providing Thunderbird 2 could keep it steady then they had a good enough chance to make it safely.

Joanne re-entered the lounge with cups of coffee for herself, Jodie and Kerry. She'd also brought some juice for Cassidy and Sian.

"Oh, thanks, Jo," said Kerry. "This is certainly different."

"Don't you ever have coffee on Thunderbird 5?" asked Joanne.

Kerry smirked. "Not whilst overseeing an operation," she said.

But their lightened mood was shattered moments later by EOS who had some rather troubling news. "I have just completed a full interior scan of the ship," she said. "There are still people inside!"

"What?!" exclaimed Kerry. "How many and where?!"

"Thirteen in total," said EOS. "Three are in the show lounge on Deck Eight. Five are on the bridge, and the other five are in the engine room below the car deck." She showed with red dots the locations of the missing people on the hologram schematic of the ship in front of them.

"There are people below the car deck!" Jodie exclaimed. "And the car deck is where all the water still is!"

Kerry spoke quickly into the radio mike. "Everyone, this is Kerry. Listen quickly!" she said. "There are thirteen people still inside the ship. Five on the bridge, five in the engine room and three in the main lounge."

This was not what Daniel and the other girls had wanted to hear.

"Shit!" said Daniel. "Beth, Adie, go find them."

"We're on it, Dad," said the two sisters hurrying into the ship.

"HEY, WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!" a crewmember yelled from one of the lifeboats that was about to be lowered. "IT'S NOT SAFE IN THERE!"

Laura also decided to alert Captain Malkovich of the danger. "Captain, you've still got people aboard. I strongly suggest you round everyone up and get to the top deck so we can winch you to safety."

"Understood, International Rescue," said Captain Malkovich. "My men will be right with you." There was a short pause as he sighed before contacting the engine room. "Chief, it's time," he said. "I want you and all of your men up on the top deck ready to be lifted off with the rest of us. And no objections, please. That is an order."

"Yes, sir," said the Chief Engineer sadly. He put the phone down and turned to his men. "Well, lads, it is time we left," he said. "We've done all we can."

The four young engineers looked at each other in dismay. They had all hoped that their ship could have been saved, but it was not to be. As the car deck was still flooded, they didn't risk opening to regular hatches so instead hurried into the emergency elevators that ran on compressed air to quickly reach the boat deck.

Captain Malkovich then turned to his officers. "Well, gentlemen, this is it," he said. "You go on. I need to grab the log books."

Keynman and the other bridge crewmen all saluted their captain and hurried from the bridge. Captain Malkovich watched them go, but instead of going to retrieve the log books, he simply stood by the wheel. Deep down inside, he knew he would face fierce questions about what had happened to his ship, and although he was a man who was good under pressure, he felt almost that it was his duty to remain and go down with her.

Beth and Adrienne met up outside the main show lounge. They quickly discovered why there were still people inside. Two of the musicians and one of the female dancers had become trapped under the piano. It had pinned them up against the wall.

"HELLO?!" the drummer was shouting. "IS ANYONE OUT THERE?!"

"CAN ANYONE HEAR US?!" shouted the bass player.

"HELP!" screamed the dancer.

"Hang on, we're coming!" Adrienne shouted as she hurried over to the stage with Beth behind her.

"We'll have you out in no time," Beth said to them. She took one end of the piano whilst Adrienne got the other. First they managed to lift it off the legs of the trapped musicians and dancer before using their strength to flip it right over and landing with a loud CRASH and accompanying keyboard noises as it hit the dancefloor. Adrienne and Beth then helped the three to their feet. The dancer seemed worst affected as she heavy big gashes on her legs so Adrienne helped her. The bass player's ankle was twisted so Beth helped him. The drummer was surprisingly fine and he was able to simply walk his way out.

Soon they were out on the boat deck. All the lifeboats were now safely in the water and moving away from the ferry. The five men from the engine room where there along with the four from the bridge.

"There, is that everyone?" asked Beth.

"No, the Captain's still not here yet," said Keynman.

From her position in Thunderbird 1, Laura used one of the cameras to zoom in on the bridge. She was shocked to see Captain Malkovich still standing by the helm. "Er, guys, it would appear the captain's deciding to stay," she said.

"Buffoon!" said Daniel. "Tell him he has to join the others. I'm going to lower the Chairs."

The Chairs was a small winch harness of ten seats located in the nose of Thunderbird 2. As there were still thirteen people, this was going to need two trips.

"Injured first," said Adrienne when the Chairs arrived at the deck. The dancer, the two band members, the four engine crewmen and three of the officers sat themselves down and strapped in before they were lifted up towards Thunderbird 2. Rosie was waiting for them at the top.

"Any luck, Laura?" asked Daniel.

"Negative," Laura replied. "He's not acknowledging me."

This gave everyone huge cause for concern.

"What the hell is wrong with the guy?" asked Cassidy.

"He must be a true traditionalist," said Daniel. "In the olden days, it was expected that if a ship sank, its captain would go down with it."

"He can't want to do that though, surely?" asked Sian.

Beth sighed. "I'll go and get him," she said. She left the others on the top deck and hurried down to the bridge. The door was shut and locked. "For the love of God!" she said. "Adie, can you ask the officer with you what the code into the bridge is?"

There was a few seconds of pause before Adrienne replied having just asked Keynman for it. "Got it," she said. "Two-Eight-Five-Seven."

Beth typed the numbers into the keypad and the door unlocked. She pulled it open and walked through onto the bridge.

Captain Malkovich was surprised. "How did you get in here?" he asked.

"Captain, you can't stay here," Beth said. "Everyone's waiting for you."

Captain Malkovich sighed heavily. "Oh, very well," he said.

Suddenly, there was a sudden violent BANG. The _Stockholm_ shuddered. Beth and Captain Malkovich were thrown off their feet. The bridge door slammed shut. Adrienne, Keynman, the Chief Engineer and the other officer were also thrown over just as the Chairs returned.

"Quick, get aboard!" Adrienne shouted.

The violent shudder had also been felt aboard Thunderbird 2.

"Thunderbird 4, what's happened?" asked Katie. "We're getting multiple warnings!"

Wizzy had seen what had happened. "The other three forwards cables have broken away!" she said.

Then there was another jolt as two cables from the aft section of the ship also gave way. It began to list again very quickly and tilt downwards. The sudden angle caused several the vehicles on the almost drained car deck to surge forwards. They slammed into the watertight door and the hard impact caused its already weakened hinges to break. The right side of the door gave way allowing several cars, vans and a few lorries to get hit by a massive burst of water before slipping out through the damaged door.

Wizzy was horrified. "Er, guys, major problem! The watertight door is breaking off! There are vehicles in the water!"

Jodie and Kerry watched in alarm as the areas affected by flooding on the hologram diagram began to spread rapidly throughout the car deck. Then it began to start entering other areas.

"This is it!" Jodie said. "She's going down!"

"Guys, get off there now!" Kerry shouted.

"But Beth and the captain still aren't here!" cried Adrienne.

The sudden increase in weight was pulling Thunderbird 2 down.

"Dad, we have to let the cables go!" Katie said. "Otherwise we'll be going under as well!"

"Just hold on a bit longer!" Daniel shouted. "Adie, get on the Chairs! Beth, hurry it up!"

But Beth was in major trouble. As she and Captain Malkovich tried to open the door, they found that it wouldn't budge. "Oh, God!" Beth cried. "Guys, we've got a problem! The bridge door is jammed. We can't get it open!"

SNAP! Another cable broke free. Thunderbird 2 was almost yanked out of the sky. In a sudden bout of panic, Katie released the cables from it the craft. They dropped down into the water alongside the doomed ferry. At the same time, Thunderbird 2 lifted up taking the Chairs with Adrienne and the other crewmen with it.

"Beth, get out of there!" Laura yelled. "She's going down!"

Beth looked behind her. Her eyes widened as she saw the water was now at the bridge's windows. "We can't!" she cried. "It won't open!"

There was nothing anyone could do but watch helplessly as the _Stockholm_ began to sink rapidly. With the bow and the bridge now submerged and the rest of the ship filling fast, it began to slide forwards with the stern rising upwards to a thirty-degree angle.

"Beth!" Daniel cried, fear flooding through his veins almost as fast as the water flooding the ferry. "Do you read me? BETH!"

But there was no reply. The crews in the two Thunderbirds plus those in the lifeboats could only watch on in shock as the _Stockholm_ slipped beneath the waves, and was gone.


	6. Christmas

"BETH! BETH - ANSWER ME!" Daniel bellowed into the radio. But there was no reply. The Stockholm was now completely submerged. The only one who could still see it was Wizzy in Thunderbird 4.

"Hang on, Beth, I'm coming!" Wizzy said pushing her craft to full power and diving down after it. The ferry was sinking almost vertically down now bow-first but Thunderbird 4 was still able to travel faster.

On the bridge, Beth and Captain Malkovich were now engulfed by the water. All the bridge's windows had smashed due to the pressure. For Beth, this wasn't a major issue for her helmet could protect her, but there was no breathing gear for Captain Malkovich. They were both clinging onto the one of the control consoles for dear life as they continued to plummet deeper into the Baltic. Beth could see that the captain was beginning to drown. She needed to act quickly if she was to save him. She took a deep breath and removed her helmet before placing it over his head. She managed to flick a switch that drained the water that had gathered inside it out and let oxygen into him.

Suddenly there was a sudden CRUNCH as the ship struck the top of a small mountain range. It crushed the rest of the bow but brought it to a stop with the stern dropping down to rest on the ledge. This enabled Thunderbird 4 could catch up. Beth then caught a flash of lights from outside and despite the darkness of the water, could make out the distinctive shape of Thunderbird 4 outside. Wizzy! Beth said in her head. Hurry!

"Wizzy, talk to me," Daniel said. "What's going on?"

"Mountain range, Dad," Wizzy replied. "It's stopped the ship from sinking further. However, it's not going to last for long. I'm going to attach onto the bridge and go EVA to get them."

"Are they still alive?" asked Rosie.

"Affirmative," Wizzy said. "I can see them! But…Beth's not got her helmet on!"

"What?!" exclaimed Laura. "What's the hell is she playing at?"

"She's put it on the captain," said Wizzy. "Must be trying to keep him alive." She then attached one of the robot arms of Thunderbird 4 to one of the bridge's window frames. "Attachment complete," she said as she put her own helmet on. "Going out now."

"Hurry, Wizzy," Jodie said from Tracy Island. "Beth's vitals are dropping. If you don't get her oxygen soon, she'll drown!"

"Thanks for the added pressure, Jodie!" said Wizzy crossly. She placed her arms across her chest, her seat tilted backwards until she was upside down, the compartment filled quickly with water and then the hatch opened in the bottom enabling her to swim outside. She quickly turned and swam as fast as she could towards the bridge. As she did so, she noticed the rocks underneath the ship was starting to break away under its weight.

Beth and Captain Malkovich looked up to see Wizzy approaching them. She grabbed hold of them both and pulled them back out of the bridge. More rocks gave way causing the ship to shift forwards.

"Wizzy, move it!" Kerry barked as she watched the hologram image of the ship. "It's about to go!"

"Stop distracting me, will you all?!" Wizzy snapped. She guided Beth and Captain Malkovich round to the back of Thunderbird 4. A large two-door hatch opened allowing them to enter. Once they were safely inside it closed up again and the water was drained. Beth let out a loud gasp of air and started coughing up water. "Beth, are you okay?" Wizzy asked.

Beth nodded. "Y-yeah, I *cough-cough-cough* think *cough* so!" she spluttered.

Thunderbird 4 then shuddered as it was tugged by the ship which had lurched again.

"Thunderbird 4, detach, detach!" Kerry shouted.

Wizzy quickly used her wrist controller to release the arm and reverse Thunderbird 4 away. They were just in time for the ledge then gave way and the Stockholm slid forwards. Its underbelly was ripped open as it passed over the rocks before tipping down and disappearing from view. "This is Thunderbird 4," Wizzy said. "We're all clear."

Daniel, Katie Adrienne and Rosie in Thunderbird 2, Laura in Thunderbird 1 and Jodie, Kerry, Joanne, Sian and Cassidy on Tracy Island all gasped in relief. They had all been fearing the worst up until this point.

Wizzy rested Beth down on one of the two stretcher-beds whilst she attended to Captain Malkovich. He too had swallowed a fair bit of seawater before Beth had given him her helmet so he coughed for a good minute before he could finally speak. "It's okay, Captain," said Wizzy. "You're safe now."

Captain Malkovich nodded. "Thank you," he said. "But you should've let me go down with my ship."

Wizzy and Beth looked at each other. "Why?" they both asked.

"Now I'll have to face the Board of Directors at the inquiry," Captain Malkovich said. "I'm afraid that this shall be the end of my career at sea." He lay down on his stretcher-bed and fell silent.

Wizzy left Beth and Captain Malkovich in the back of Thunderbird 4 and returned to the cockpit. "Thunderbird 2, I'm coming back up," she said. "Are the rescue ships here yet?"

"Funny you should say that," Daniel said. "The Tallinn's just arriving now."

The Stockholm's identical sister ship was just coming to a stop as Thunderbird 4 broke the surface. It's arrival had come as huge relief to everyone in the lifeboats. Two more ships, a cargo ship and a cruise liner had also answered the distress call and joined in. there were too many to be taken aboard just one of the three ships so they divided into three groups and sent to each one whilst the International Rescue team supervised.

Thunderbird 4 transferred a very silent Captain Malkovich over to the Tallinn before returning to Pod 4 which Thunderbird 2 had dropped back into the water. The weather was a lot calmer now than it had been before, but was still bitterly cold - not that any of the International Rescue team had noticed. A cable was fired down from within the pod and attached to the rear of Thunderbird 4 before pulling it back up onto the ramp.

Adrienne was there to greet her two sisters. "Beth, please stop doing this to us," she said. "We almost lost you once this year."

Beth had no regrets of what she'd done though. "I was just doing my job," she said simply. She ran her fingers through her soggy hair. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to shower."

The door of Pod 4 closed up as the cable clamps from Thunderbird 2 lifted it back up out of the water.

"Mission complete," Daniel said. "Thunderbirds 1, 2 and 4 are heading home. Lead the way, Laura."

"F-A-B!" said Laura happily.

The rescued personnel from the Stockholm cheered and waved as Thunderbird 1 and 2 zoomed away and disappeared into the night.

Cassidy woke early the next morning. She was excited. "Wake up, Sian! Wake up!" she said.

Sian, who had been sound asleep up until this point, woke with a start. "Wha-what?!" she asked.

"You know what day today is?" Cassidy asked.

Sian picked up her glasses from the bedside table and put them on before looking at the clock. "What the hell, Cassidy?" she asked grumpily. "It's 6am!"

"Never mind what time it is," said Cassidy. "Do you know what day it is?"

"The day after yesterday," Sian answered sarcastically as she put her glasses back. "Now, leave me be please. I want to sleep."

Cassidy sighed. "Suit yourself," she said. "I'm going to see what presents I have." She left the bedroom and forgot to shut the door quietly.

The sudden BANG of the door woke Karolina up. Her karate training forced her to jump out of the bed and be ready in case of trouble. But then she realised that it had come from the next room. "Cassidy must be up again," she murmured out loud to herself before going back to sleep.

Cassidy went down the stairs towards the lounge. She crept in and her eyes lit up delightedly. The large Christmas Tree stood just inside the door. Its multicoloured lights twinkled in the darkness as she turned the smaller lights on. It had been put up by everyone after they had returned from the Stockholm rescue. They had also decorated the rest of the mansion with festive decorations. Around the base of the tree was all the presents. It was tradition that every year everyone gave a present to each of the other members. For example, Daniel had bought exactly fourteen presents - with one for each of his daughters and one each for Kerry, Zoë, Jodie, Rosie, Joanne, Cassidy, Sian, Karolina and Kyrano. Others were also bought for Lady Penelope, Parker and the five Tracy brothers even though they usually spent Christmas at their homes. But as Cassidy looked at the piles of presents, she couldn't help but notice that some things weren't the same. For starters, there were normally fifteen piles, but this time, there were only fourteen. She knew immediately why this was - Kyrano was no longer with them. It was such a tragedy that his passing had to have happened so soon to Christmas. She looked through her pile and saw that the one from him was still there, even though she barely knew him. But also, as she looked at the other piles, she noticed that Karolina's had one present less than the others. Cassidy frowned. Maybe, she thought, Daniel had removed the present from her father to her just in case it upset her again, or maybe Karolina had asked him to remove it. Looking round to make sure nobody was looking, she began to search through Karolina's pile to see if she was correct. However, she was surprised to find that Kyrano's was there, and it was Jodie's present that was missing. That can't be right, Cassidy thought to herself. She quickly checked her pile again, but Jodie's to hers was there. This was very fishy, Cassidy thought. It wasn't like Jodie to miss things out like this.

By mid-morning, the whole of the Tracy Lounge was covered with ripped wrapping paper as everyone opened their presents. Zoë and Joanne weren't there for most of it for they were busy getting the turkey ready for the big feast that was due around lunchtime.

Everyone seemed to be in very high spirits, except for Karolina who slunk off outside without opening any of her presents at all.

"Oh, dear," Laura said sadly to Daniel as they watched her walk along the patio. "This must be so hard for her to accept."

"Kyrano meant the world to her, Laura," Daniel said. "You know that. And we can relate to how she is feeling as well."

Laura didn't say anything. She simply nodded glumly in agreement. The Christmas following the loss of her mother had been the toughest of her life. It had been the same for her sisters as well as Daniel, Kerry and Zoë for they'd also lost Amber.

Joanne then entered. "Everyone happy with what they've got?" she asked.

"Yes, thank you," everyone said.

"All except for one poor soul," said Kerry, nodding out of the window.

Joanne looked out and saw Karolina disappearing towards the beach. "Oh, dear," she sighed. "This was always going to be the worst day for her."

"She hasn't even touched her presents," added Katie.

Everyone then looked at the one remaining pile of presents left by the tree. Nobody had even bothered to put the presents for Kyrano by it. Cassidy began to bite her tongue. She really wanted to know why there was not a present from Jodie in that pile, but Wizzy beat her to it.

"Wait a minute," said Wizzy. She went over to the pile of presents and began counting them. "There's one missing!" She looked at the others. "Who's forgotten to get Karolina's present."

"Nobody," said Daniel. "It's just that Jodie's is a bit big."

"Indeed," Jodie replied. "MAX and the other robot arms only finished putting it together yesterday."

The girls looked at each other, puzzled.

"What's this?" asked Adrienne.

"Is there something you've not been telling us, Dad?" asked Beth.

Daniel chuckled. "Secret project that Jodie and I have been working on," he said.

"You'll find out what it is later," said Jodie. "We didn't tell you in case it accidentally got let slip, after all that she's been through."

The girls weren't cross, but intrigued.

The radio then bleeped. It was EOS calling from Thunderbird 5.

"Uh-oh," remarked Katie.

Joanne groaned. "Oh, no, not today, please!"

Daniel pressed a button. "Go ahead, EOS."

But to everyone's surprise, EOS started singing. "I wish you a Merry Christmas! I wish you a Merry Christmas! I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!"

Everyone burst out laughing.

"And a Merry Christmas to you too, EOS," said Daniel.

"We thought you were going to tell us of a situation," said Kerry.

"Not today I hope," EOS said. "Luckily, everything is very quiet. I just wanted to pass on my wishes to you all, and to inform you that Francois Lemaire is going to attempt re-entry in about thirty minutes' time."

The smiles vanished from everyone's faces except for Leanna, Sian and Cassidy.

"Oh, dear God!" groaned Laura.

"Not that pompous buffoon again!" agreed Beth.

"Who?" asked Leanna.

The other girls looked at her.

"You've never heard of Francois Lemaire?" spluttered Adrienne.

"A rich and idiotic businessman," said Daniel. "He always tries difficult and very dangerous stunts that always result in us having to rescue him and whoever he is with."

"Scott, Alan, Adie and I once have to rescue him and his wife from Halley's Comet," said Beth.

"Oh, yeah, and then he constantly moaned all the way back to Earth because he wanted some cheese," said Adrienne.

Leanna frowned. "Come now, guys, he can't be that bad, surely?" she said.

Before any of the others could reply, the television was switched on to reveal Francois Lemaire with his hideously pompous face smiling into the camera.

"Ugh!" remarked Wizzy deliberately turning away.

"Hello, people of Earth!" Francois announced. "And a very Merry Christmas to one and all!"

"What a wanker!" remarked Laura, but she was sternly hushed by Zoë.

"Today is a very special day, for me in particular," Francois continued.

"You see," Katie whispered to Leanna. "Completely up himself."

Leanna was rather taken aback by what Francois had just said.

"Today is the day I get to take my gorgeous wife Madeline up into space once more aboard our newly finished space-yacht, the Solar Wind II," Francois said. His camera then panned round to reveal the dark-blue whale-shaped spacecraft with two solar-panel sails mounted on its top. "And a magnificent beauty she is. And of course, Madeline is very attractive too, in places." He giggled which made even Daniel cringe.

"Okay," said Leanna. "I'm starting to see what you mean."

"Is he always like this?" asked Sian.

"The times we've encountered him, most certainly," said Daniel. "I don't know how his wife hasn't left him yet."

"Don't know why she even married him!" remarked Adrienne.

Francois was now inside the Solar Wind II where Madeline was already doing stuff with an iPad. Once again, she had her annoyed expression on and wasn't looking at the camera or her husband. "Inside we have yet more magnificent oak wall panels which will NOT be ripped apart by International Rescue this time, and if they are watching, I'm still waiting for you to answer my bill for that!"

Several snorts came from Daniel and the girls.

"He never even sent one!" said Beth.

"He did actually," said Daniel. "But I fed it to the shredder."

This brought a smirk to everyone's faces.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls," Francois said putting his face so close to the camera that it backed away from him, "the time has come for us to launch." He sat himself down in a big armchair. "Off we go, Madeline."

"Yes…darling," Madeline replied grumpily, pressing a button on the control pad.

Alarms blared out around the French Military Base where the Solar Wind II had been constructed. One by one the magnetic clamps were detached. The vertical thrusters fired up and it began to rise gracefully into the air. It then fired its main boosters and began to climb away from the base into the sky heading towards space.

"Whooooooooooooooooooooooooohoooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!" jeered Francois. "Oh, yes, baby, this is the life!"

Madeline, who was also now sitting in a chair, just groaned. "We were meant to be having dinner with my family," she said. "Why did you insist on doing this today?"

"Ah, who cares about that?" Francois said cheerfully.

Madeline glared at him. Her face began to turn red with fury.

"Oh, boy! He's in for it now," said Katie.

But before Madeline could say anything, Francois got up and began talking again. "And here we are, in space!" he said as the cameras showed that the Solar Wind II was leaving the Earth's atmosphere. "Ah, it is sooo magnificent! It takes me back to such beautiful memories of our honeymoon and that time when we went to see Halley's Comet."

"And look where that got you!" said Beth.

"Can you pipe down, please?" Cassidy asked, annoyed. "I can't hear what he's saying?"

"Why would you want to hear his god-awful voice?" asked Wizzy who was playing on her phone.

"Girls, enough, all of you!" Daniel snapped causing them all to fall silent.

"The Solar Wind II is state-of-the-art," Francois went on. "The most up-to-date and reliable spaceship that has ever been built. Not even that pathetic excuse of a thing that International Rescue use, which had just no facilities WHATSOEVER!"

Adrienne and Beth turned as red as Thunderbird 3. "Why you disgusting…" they both began, but they were interrupted, not by Daniel, but by a beeping noise coming from the space-yacht's radio.

"Oh, excuse me, a second," said Francois. "I do believe we're getting our first Christmas greeting." He pressed a button. "Hello!"

An angry-looking man in a military uniform appeared on the projector. "LEMAIRE, YOU STUPID BLOODY IDIOT!" he shouted. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU PLAYING AT?! THAT SHIP OF YOURS HAS NOT BEEN…"

Francois, who had almost jumped out of his skin at the shouting very quickly cut the man off. "Good lord me!" he exclaimed. "What an imbecile, trying to ruin my day like that. Huge apologies to all my fans who are watching. Anyone want to call and wish me Merry Christmas? I'll be here all day."

Daniel and the girls began to look at each other, frowning.

"What was that all about?" asked Zoë.

"That man's uniform looked like the one worn by those working around the yacht when it was on the ground," observed Laura.

Daniel's eyes narrowed. "Turn the volume down," he said. "I need to make a call."

Katie, who had the remote control, did so.

Daniel found the correct frequency to contact the Air Base in Northern France. "Charles de Gaulle Air Base from International Rescue, are you receiving me?"

The call was surprisingly answered immediately, by none other than the same man who'd just shouted at Francois. "International Rescue, thank the Gods!" the man cried. "You have to stop him!"

"Pardon me, sir," said Daniel. "Are you the guy who just shouted at Lemair?"

"You been watching broadcast?" asked the man. "Then yes, it was me. I am Major FaBrizzio. I am ze Chief Engineer behind ze Solar Wind II."

"If you don't mind me asking, Major," Daniel said. "What was all that about? It sounded important."

"Important?!" cried FaBrizzio. "I'll say! That ship does not have a safety-certificate! It hasn't even had a test flight!"

A stunned silence filled the Tracy Lounge. Everyone looked at each other, then over at Lemaire who was still walking around happily talking to the cameras despite the sound being turned off.

"So he's flying in an unlicensed space vehicle?" Daniel asked. "Great!"

"We did not finish testing the materials to make sure that it would withstand the harsh environments of space," FaBrizzio continued. "Please, International Rescue, you have to get them back to Earth before that ship falls apart!"

"Don't worry, sir," said Daniel. "We will." He turned to Joanne and Zoë. "Sorry, but Christmas Dinner is going to have to wait. We can't have him flying around up there being a danger to himself and other ships."

"It's okay, Daniel," said Zoë understandingly. "This is very important. It'll keep until you get back."

"Wait, all of us are going?" asked Wizzy. "Isn't this just a Thunderbird 3 job?"

"Primarily, yes, Wizzy," said Daniel. "However, we don't know how that craft will manage during the re-entry procedure. I think we should launch Thunderbirds 1 and 2 and be ready just in case."

"What about Thunderbird 4?" asked Katie. "Just in case they end up in the ocean?"

Jodie spoke up. "Why don't Laura launch Thunderbird 1 and follow the re-entry progress from within the atmosphere. Then once we've established where they're heading, Thunderbird 2 can launch with the correct pod if need be?"

"Sounds like a plan," said Daniel. "Okay, Laura, Beth, Adie. you know what to do."

"Yes, Dad," the three girls said.

This was to be a first for International Rescue as Thunderbirds 1 and 3 had not been launched together without Thunderbird 2 before. By the time Adrienne and Beth were being hoisted up on the yellow arm towards Thunderbird 3, Thunderbird 1 was already being moved through its diagonal tunnel towards the launching bay under the pool. Within minutes, both ships were ready for launching.

5…4…3…2…1!

Thunderbird 1 was the first to fire up its engines and rise out from where the pool usually was. Then it was the turn of Thunderbird 3 to come to life and soar up out from beneath the Roundhouse.

"Thunderbird 1 is away!" said Laura.

"Thunderbird 3 is go!" said Beth.

"Good luck, girls," said Daniel. "We'll have Thunderbird 2 standing-by if you need us."

"F-A-B!" Laura, Beth and Adrienne all said together as the two rockets headed towards space.

It wasn't long before they reached near the height of Thunderbird 1's operating limit. "This is where I leave you Thunderbird 3," said Laura. "Go give him hell from me."

"Don't worry, Thunderbird 1, we will," said Beth.

Of course, that wasn't what they were really going to do, but what they were planning to do was speak to Lemaire about his comment regarding Thunderbird 3 and see what he had to say for himself. They hoped that they could embarrass him in front of his audience.

"Thunderbird 5, we've left Earth's atmosphere," said Adrienne. "Where is Lemaire's ship?"

"The Solar Wind II is currently on a clockwise orbit heading across the North America," EOS said. "Do you want me to call ahead and tell them you're coming?"

"No, we'll give him a surprise call when we get to him," said Beth. "Thanks, EOS."

"My pleasure," EOS replied.

It wasn't long before Thunderbird 3 caught up with the Solar Wind II and slowly crept alongside from behind.

"Well, there it is," said Adrienne.

"Do you want to call him or shall I?" asked Beth.

"Let us both do it," said Adrienne. "And then take it in turns with talking just to confuse him."

Beth grinned. "I'll hold this position so that he doesn't see us to begin with," she said.

Francois was completely oblivious to Thunderbird 3's sudden presence. The rocket was now flying just behind and on the left-side of the Solar Wind II. he was still talking away to his audience like his off-switch had been disabled. "And now we are flying over the stupendous landmass that is North America," he was saying to his little hovering cameras. "So many people down there just waiting to wish me a 'Merry Christmas'." His caller then sounded again. "And here we go!" he said. "Hello!"

"Francois Lemaire?" Beth's voice said slightly scrambled over the radio due to the voice-scrambler.

"Well who else is up here?" he asked.

"Your wife who is thinking of divorce?" said Adrienne's voice now, also scrambled.

Lemaire went silent with confusion for a moment. Madeline, who had refused to even look round at her husband for the last twenty minutes, also turned round in confusion.

"Who is this?" asked Lemaire.

"This is International Rescue," said Beth. "And we're not here to wish you a 'Merry Christmas', Mr Lemaire. We're here to take you back to Earth."

Lemaire was outraged. "How DARE YOU?!" he thundered. "Don't try and ruin my perfect day here, International Rescue! Clear this line!" He pressed the button to end the call.

"Ooh, touched a nerve, did we?" Adrienne asked slyly.

Lemaire was stunned. He kept pressing the button but it wouldn't cut the line.

"Listen to us, Lemaire," said Beth, suddenly very serious. "You do realise that you are flying around in a spacecraft that isn't registered yet?"

"WHAT?!" shrieked Madeline, jumping up from her seat.

Lemaire's nostrils flared. "Now you listen to me, International…AGH!"

Madeline had charged over from the sofa and elbowed her husband out of the way. She then spoke into the radio. "International Rescue, what was that you said?" she asked.

"Mrs Lemaire, the man who your husband cut off earlier was the engineer responsible for the ship you are flying in," said Beth. "It is not registered, nor has it even undertaken a test flight. It would seem that your husband's arrogance had got the better of him again."

"Oh, it has!" said Madeline, fury rushing through her veins. "And you're so damn right. When we get back to Earth, I will be filing for a divorce!"

Lemaire got back to his feet, looking equally outraged. "You…you…can't do this to me!" he roared.

Suddenly, there was a dull moaning sound. All the lights flickered and began to dim. Additionally, they heard the sound of engines powering down.

"What's happening?" Lemaire shouted.

"Warning! Power failure imminent!" said the ship's computer. "Warning! Power failure imminent!"

Then the Solar Wind II lurched and began to veer off to the right. It then started to drop back towards the Earth. Madeline screamed as she was thrown across the room for nothing was secured down.

"Do something!" yelled Francois.

"Oh, shit!" said Adrienne.

Beth quickly got on the radio. "This is Thunderbird 3 - we have a situation!"

Kerry answered immediately. "What's happened, Beth?" she asked. "We've lost the live feed from the ship."

"The ship's losing power," Beth said. "It's dropping back towards the Earth. We're going after them."

Thunderbird 3 turned and began to dive after the Solar Wind II. they could no longer talk to Lemaire or Madeline for the power failure had disabled the communications as well.

Using data from Thunderbirds 3 and 5, Kerry and Jodie were able to see the position of both ships and determine what to do next. Immediately they could see a problem.

"Thunderbird 3, the angle that the ship's falling at is wrong!" Jodie said. "You've got to correct it now otherwise it'll burn up."

"And how do you suggest we do that?" asked Adrienne.

"Tractor-beam?" asked Beth.

"Yes!" Jodie said. "Took the words right out of my mouth, Beth. you need to adjust it by thirty degrees to starboard. Then it should pass through safely."

"That's if it survives the re-entry," said Adrienne.

"It has to," said Beth. "Thunderbird 1, you there?"

"Closing in on your position, Thunderbird 3," Laura answered. "I'll let you know when I have visual."

"F-A-B," said Beth. She adjusted Thunderbird 3's course so that it was directly following behind the Solar Wind II. "Ready with tractor-beam?"

"Ready," Adrienne replied. "Target is locked."

"Do it," said Beth.

Adrienne pressed the button. A beam of white light shot out from Thunderbird 3's nose and surrounded the yacht. It was like a magnetic towline of sorts that could pull heavy metal objects around in dangerous and hostile environments such as the one they were in now. Normally Beth and Adrienne could've used the three big grappling arms and cables to do the job, but not this close to the Earth's atmosphere. They couldn't risk getting burned up themselves.

Daniel was getting impatient. He, Katie, Wizzy and Rosie were already in their uniforms and sitting in the cockpit of Thunderbird 2 waiting to hear the news. "Jodie, what's going on?" he asked. "The longer we sit here, the less chance we'll have of assisting."

"One second, please, Mr Tracy," Jodie replied. "We still don't know where it's going to head for once it has passed through."

Luckily, EOS had already done that for them. "According to my calculations, at the angle that you have asked Thunderbird 3 to put the Solar Wind II at will have it crash-landing in the Eastern Pacific Ocean just off the coast of Easter Island," she said.

"Did you hear that, Daniel?" Kerry asked. "Pacific Ocean near Easter Island."

"Good, then we know what we need," said Daniel. "Selecting Pod 4."

"Hold on, Dad," interrupted Katie. "Shouldn't we be trying to stop the craft from hitting the ocean?"

"She's right," agreed Wizzy. "Even if it does survive the re-entry, there's no guarantee that it won't be smashed to pieces when it hits the water."

"We'll only use Thunderbird 4 as a last resort," Daniel said. "We can still attempt to catch it before it hits the ocean." He pressed a button on the control panel which selected Pod 4. The conveyor moved Pods 1, 2 and 3 underneath the main body before stopping with Pod 4 underneath. The main body was then lowered down and the pod was locked into place. It then moved forwards with the hangar doors opening to allow it to exit out onto the runway. The palm trees folded back as it made its way down to the launching ramp. Once in position, the ramp rose into position and the blast shield lifted into place behind the rocket engines.

5…4…3…2…1!

Thunderbird 2's engines fired and the green leviathan was airborne. "Thunderbird 2 is go!" said Daniel as it turned East and began to climb upwards to rendezvous with Thunderbird 1.

Slowly but surely, the Solar Wind II began to change its angle of descent, but it was already starting to re-enter the atmosphere as the burning flames as objects touched the upper layers began to appear.

"Beth, we're not going to make it!" Adrienne cried. "It's too late!"

Beth didn't reply. Her eyes were sharp and unblinking, focused fully on the task. The flames burning around the Solar Wind II were making it hard to see whether their attempt was working or whether it was simply starting to burn up.

From their position in the lounge, Kerry and Jodie watched also unblinking with fixed concentration as they could see the position of the space-yacht.

"Thunderbird 3, you're getting too close to danger point!" Kerry said. "You need to abort!"

"Abort?!" scoffed Beth. "Never!"

"Beth, it's too dangerous!" cried Jodie. "Break off!"

But Beth paid no attention. Adrienne was about to switch off the beam but Beth grabbed the controls herself. She increased the power of the tractor-beam and continued to move the Solar Wind II round a bit more. Inside, Madeline and Francois were screaming in fright as the G-forces had pushed them up against the walls and the cabin was filling with intense heat.

As Jodie watched, she noticed that the yacht was almost at the angle that she had instructed them to do.

"Thunderbird 3, it's too late!" Kerry said with a raised voice. "You need to stop this!"

"No, Thunderbird 3, keep going!" Jodie said taking everyone by surprise. "You're almost there!"

Adrienne could not do anything at all except stare at her sister in amazement. She had never seen such determination and concentration from anyone before, and was somewhat transfixed by it.

"Four degrees," said Jodie. "Three degrees. Two. One. You're there!"

Beth released the tractor-beam and pulled Thunderbird 3 away. "Tractor-beam power off," she said.

Thunderbird 1 was racing high through the upper atmosphere at its operating limit. It didn't take long for Laura to catch sight of what looked like a giant meteor passing through the Earth's atmosphere. She could tell by the shape of it that it was the Solar Wind II.

"This is Thunderbird 1, I have visual contact on the Solar Wind II," Laura said. "It's made it through."

"Good news," said Daniel. "Stay with it, Thunderbird 1. We'll be with you in three minutes."

"F-A-B, Thunderbird 2," said Laura. "I'm going to take a closer look."

"Don't get too close, Laura," warned Jodie. "We don't know if it's been damaged in any way."

Laura moved Thunderbird 1 as close as she dared to the falling space-yacht. The orange glow around it was now starting to fade. She could see that its dark-blue paintwork was now badly scorched. Great streaks of bare grey metal could now be seen underneath. Clearly the paint-job wasn't completed either.

"How's it looking, Thunderbird 1?" Kerry asked.

"The shell looks to be still intact which is good," said Laura. "But they're going to need to touch-up the paintwork and repair the masts I reckon."

"What about the Lemaires?" asked Joanne. "Is there any sign of them?"

"Windows are too small to see inside, Jo," replied Laura. "But my thermal-scanner is picking them up so they're still alive. But the G-forces are having a powerful effect on them. They're being pushed up against the back of the lounge."

"How's the trajectory?" Daniel asked from Thunderbird 2. "Is it still the same?"

"Affirmative, Thunderbird 2," said Laura. "Impact point is roughly twenty-eight miles to the West of Easter Island."

"Ironic," remarked Wizzy.

"What is?" asked Katie.

"Seeing Easter Island on Christmas Day," said Wizzy. "I wonder if the shops have stocked Easter Eggs yet?"

"Oh, God, no, Wizzy, please!" groaned Rosie. "Let's get Christmas and New Year over with first!"

"Agreed," said Daniel.

"Dad," said Katie suddenly. "There they are."

Daniel, Wizzy and Rosie glanced out of the windows to see the distant shapes of the Solar Wind II with Thunderbird 1 diving alongside it.

"I see them," said Daniel. "We have visual, Thunderbird 1. Coming in now."

Laura looked down through the floor hatch windows and saw Thunderbird 2 rising towards her. "Good to see you, Thunderbird 2," she said.

"So what's the plan?" Cassidy asked.

"We'll try and grapple the yacht and slow its descent so that it doesn't smash into the ocean and break apart," said Daniel. "Then we'll transfer the occupants to one of the ships and get them transferred to the nearest hospital."

"Probably best if I do that," said Laura. "You won't be able to travel fast whilst carrying the yacht."

"True, but Rosie might want to examine them," said Daniel.

"If they need desperate medical help then you can take them to hospital, Laura," agreed Rosie.

"What about us, Dad?" asked Beth. "Is there anything we can do to help?"

"I don't think so, Beth," said Daniel. "You return to base and relax. You've earned it. Both of you."

"F-A-B," Adrienne and Beth said together and signed off.

Thunderbird 2 then turned and began to dive after the Solar Wind II. But as they approached, Katie saw a danger that Laura couldn't. "Dad, the mast's are breaking!" she cried.

"Laura, look out!" Daniel shouted.

Laura quickly moved Thunderbird 1 to the right and the falling main mast of the yacht missed the port wing by just three inches. "Jesus!" gasped Laura. "That was close. Thanks, Thunderbird 2."

Daniel and Katie moved Thunderbird 2 over the top of the yacht and slowed to match its speed. Daniel opened a hatch at the bottom of the pod and using the targeting computer, began to find the best areas to fire the grappling clamps.

"Keep her steady, Katie," said Daniel. "The turbulence here is strong."

"Yes, Dad," said Katie. "I'll do my best."

Laura watched from Thunderbird 1. Kerry, Leanna, Jodie, Zoë, Joanne, Sian and Cassidy watched the hologram in the lounge. None of them spoke for they were all transfixed by what was happening.

Karolina then re-appeared. "What's going on?" she asked. "Where are the others?"

"Mission, Karolina," said Kerry. "They're trying to save the skins of the Lemaires again."

Karolina raised an eyebrow. "Funny," she said. "I never hear them launch."

The others looked at each other, puzzled.

"Are you serious?" asked Leanna. "Thunderbirds 1 and 3 took off over thirty minutes ago."

"And Thunderbird 2 left thirteen minutes ago," added Sian.

"Where the blazes were you then?" asked Joanne.

Karolina hung her head. "In my cave," she said sadly. She then sat herself down on one of the chairs. "I'm sorry for going out whilst everyone was opening presents. I just wanted some alone time."

"That's understandable," said Zoë. She put her hand on Karolina's shoulder. "Come on, darling. Would you like to help me in the kitchen get the dinner ready?"

Karolina was tempted by this, but at the same time was interested to listen to the rescue operation. "Thank you, Mrs Tracy," she said. "But I'd like to see what happens."

Zoë smiled and nodded understandingly. After all, there was no point in getting things ready until they were certain that Thunderbirds 1 and 2 were on their way back to the island.

Daniel had now got the right locations selected for the grapple hooks. This was going to be a similar operation to how they'd kept the Stockholm afloat only the Solar Wind II was nowhere near as massive as that had been. That didn't mean that the mission would be any easier for the Stockholm hadn't been falling at over 3,000mph.

"Targets locked," said Daniel. "Firing grapples."

The four cables were launched from the hatch underneath Thunderbird 2 and the magnetic clamps passed underneath the hull of the space-yacht before locking onto each other. Immediately after, Katie applied power to Thunderbird 2's VTOL engines which then began to act as a form of brake to slow the descent. Laura watched with eagle-eyes as the Solar Wind II levelled out and began to slow down.

"It's working!" Laura said. "Keep it up, Thunderbird 2 - you're doing great!"

Thunderbird 2 slowed the Solar Wind II down more and more until the descent had been reduced from 3,000mph to just 10mph.

"There," said Daniel. "I believe we've got them."

"Mr Tracy," said Jodie. "Might I suggest you go down to above sea level and then carry it along there. That way if anything does fail it won't fall far and the landing won't be hard."

"Good idea," said Daniel. "Katie, take us down."

Laura was concerned. "Are you sure about this, Dad?" she asked. "Clouds are a bit low over the sea."

"Let's go down and see," said Daniel.

As Thunderbird 2 continued to descend with the Solar Wind II and Thunderbird 1 close by, the forces inside the yacht had returned to normal. Everything in the lounge was a complete mess with all the furniture and fittings broken and thrown all over the place.

Francois got to his feet. His face had cuts and bruises from where he had been thrown around during the re-entry. He didn't think to check and see if his wife was okay and just looked around at the wrecked lounge. "What…the HELL?!" he thundered in fury. "Just LOOK at this place! Oh, International Rescue, you are so going to pay for it this time!"

Francois then turned around and froze at the sight of Madeline. She had got herself to her feet without any assistance. Like her husband, she also had cuts and bruises on her face, arms and legs. She was staring hard at him with a look of pure hatred and fury on her face. She began to roll up the sleeves of her cardigan before starting to walk menacing towards him. Francois opened his mouth but nothing came out as he started to back away. Madeline then let out a shriek and charged at him with her arms outstretched in front of her.

Oblivious to what was now going on inside the yacht, Thunderbird 2 had got the yacht to just fifty metres above the surface of the Pacific Ocean. The wind was a bit strong still and the waves were choppy but were not going to be a major threat to any of them.

"Time for the transfer," said Daniel. "Katie, keep her steady. Wizzy, come with me."

"Yes, Dad," the two girls said.

Daniel and Wizzy put on their helmets and stood on the elevator that lowered them from the cockpit out into the open from where they could use their grapple guns to drop down onto the top of the Solar Wind II.

"Bit breezy," remarked Daniel.

"You cold?" asked Wizzy, surprised.

"Cold? No," said Daniel. "Just lucky to have magnetic boots. Come on, here's the hatch."

After opening the hatch, Wizzy dropped down into the yacht first followed by Daniel. When they tried to open the door into the lounge they found that it was jammed.

"Stand back," said Daniel. Wizzy did so that Daniel could kick the door in. However, they found that didn't work either.

"Strange," said Wizzy. "You reckon its blocked?"

"Could be," said Daniel. He then took a small demolition charge from his utility sash before attaching it to the door. He set the timer for eight seconds giving them time to get back and take cover.

BANG! The door was blown open and they hurried inside.

"Mr Lemaire," said Daniel. "My apolo…"

Both stopped and stared around in disbelief.

"Oh, my God!" exclaimed Wizzy.

Francois Lemaire was lying on the floor on his back. His face was completely covered in blood like he had been attacked by a pack of lions. His nose appeared to be smashed and his eyes were closed. Daniel quickly got down to check to see if he had a pulse. He did but it was very weak.

"What on earth could've done this?" asked Wizzy.

"Me…" said a weak-sounding voice from behind them. Looking round, they saw Madeline sitting with her back against the wall. She too was blooded, but the blood was all over her clothes and hands. She was also crying heavily. "I'm so sorry," she sobbed. "I couldn't control myself."

Daniel and Wizzy looked at each other. "Come on," said Daniel. "Let's get you both out of here."

Daniel carefully carried Francois up to Thunderbird 2 whilst Wizzy carried Madeline. They took both of them to the Medical Bay so that Rosie could examine them both. Like them, she too was shocked to see the state that Francois was in. "My God, the re-entry's really done him in, didn't it?" she said as she began to examine him.

"It wasn't the re-entry that did this," Daniel said. "It was his wife. Looks like she finally had enough of him."

Rosie was even more shocked. "Well…" she said, feeling somewhat speechless. "I can't blame her for having had enough of him for the way he treats her, but…I never would've expected this."

Wizzy was trying to calm Madeline down who despite all the hatred she'd developed for her husband, was also very ashamed of what she had done.

"Is he going to need immediate attention?" asked Daniel.

"He's lost a lot of blood, but he's got no life-threatening injuries," said Rosie. "I can keep him stable so we can get them and their ship to wherever you were thinking."

"Back to France I was thinking," said Daniel. "That going to be an issue."

"It shouldn't be, no," said Rosie. "But I'll let you know of any changes."

Daniel nodded. He then returned to the cockpit leaving Wizzy to look after Madeline."

"What's going to happen to me?" Madeline asked. "Am I going to get arrested?"

"Sorry, Mrs Lemaire, but that's not up to us," said Wizzy. "As your husband's still alive you should be okay, but don't be surprised if the Police want to find out how he came to be the way he is."

Madeline screwed up her eyes and began to sob again.

Daniel then rejoined Katie in the cockpit. "Charles de Gaulle Air Base, Katie," he said. "And take it very steady now."

"F-A-B," said Katie. "Thunderbird 1, follow our lead."

"F-A-B," said Laura. "Where are we going?"

"Charles de Gaulle Air Base, Laura," said Daniel. "You'd better radio ahead and tell them to have the Police and Ambulances ready."

"Police and Ambulances?" asked Kerry, who had been listening in. "I presume the Police are to arrest Lemaire for his idiotic actions?"

"No actually," said Daniel. "Lemaire's unconscious and covered in blood. It would seem that his wife lost all control and attacked him. He's a right mess."

There was a stunned silence. Daniel looked round at the shocked looks on Katie, Laura and Kerry's faces. Kerry also shared the same looks with Jodie, Zoë, Joanne, Cassidy, Sian, Leanna and Karolina. None of them had expected this at all.

Katie broke the silence. "ETA to the air base is forty-five minutes," she said. "We can't go too fast just in case we lose the ship."

Daniel nodded in agreement.

At Charles de Gaulle Air Base, it wasn't just the Police that were waiting for the International Rescue team to arrive. Two large Helijets had landed at the base. These belonged to the Global Defence Force and among the many soldiers that they had brought with them was Colonel Martha Casey, the leader of the GDF. She was also a very good friend of the International Rescue team, Daniel in particular for her husband Colonel Tim Casey had flown the first Moon missions alongside Daniel and Jeff Tracy.

Everyone was poised and ready as Thunderbirds 1 and 2 appeared over the hills with the Solar Wind II. It really looked in a sorry state now. Its paint was scorched, its masts were ripped off completely and there was also a gaping hole in its stern where the heat of re-entry had simply melted the metal.

Major FaBrizzio and Colonel Casey were waiting at the front of the group as Thunderbird 2 carefully lowered the Solar Wind II onto the tarmac. Once that was done the cables were released and Thunderbirds 2 and 1 landed nearby.

Whilst FaBrizzio and his men went to examine the damage to the space-yacht, Colonel Casey, her men, the Police and Paramedics approached Thunderbird 2.

Daniel was the first to exit. "Martha Casey," he said greeting his friend warmly. "Didn't expect to see you out on Christmas Day."

"We are a 24/7/365 organisation too, you know, Daniel Tracy," Colonel Casey said with a wink as they hugged. "I understand you have some villain for us?"

"Villain? Hardy," Daniel said. "Imbecilic, most certainly. And believe it or not, he's the one who needs the attention."

Colonel Casey blinked in astonishment as Rosie and Katie emerged from Thunderbird 2's pod pushing a stretcher with Lemaire on it. He was still unconscious but was getting oxygen from a special tank. Then from behind came Wizzy helping a still very distraught Madeline out. "Did she do this?" asked Colonel Casey.

"Yes," said Daniel. "You could be forgiven for thinking the re-entry into the atmosphere did this to him, but no. It was her."

"Oh…I see," said Colonel Casey. "As you well know, Daniel, I have got no time for Francois Lemaire any more than you. But, we must get to the bottom of this."

"What's to find out?" Daniel asked. "She's already confessed."

Laura came over from Thunderbird 1 and saw the mess that Lemaire was in for herself as he was taken over to the Ambulance and put onto a different stretcher. Even though she and her sisters despised Lemaire, they had not wanted this to happen to him.

Once Francois was in the back of the Ambulance and driven away under Police escort, Colonel Casey came to take Madeline off Wizzy's hands. "Mrs Lemaire, would you come with me, please?" she said.

Madeline went white. Most of the blood had been washed off her and she began to tremble. "Please!" she begged. "I didn't mean for it to be like this."

"We're not locking you up, Mrs Lemaire," said Colonel Casey. "I only want to have a talk with you."

Madeline didn't move. She looked at Wizzy and Daniel as if to say 'help me'.

"Go with her, Madeline," Wizzy said. "She's a fair and decent person. Trust me."

Madeline wiped the tears from her eyes and began to walk towards Colonel Casey. Then she turned to face Daniel and the girls. "I'm so sorry," she said to them. "I'm sorry for my husband's comments about your spaceship. I'm sorry we had to bring you out on Christmas Day." She then broke down again as Colonel Casey led her away with the help of one of her senior Lieutenants, Rebecca Ballard.

"Poor thing," remarked Wizzy. "Our Christmas may not be ruined, but hers certainly is."

"And in a way more so than the damaging words of her husband," agreed Laura.

"What's going to happen to them?" Katie asked Daniel.

"That's not our problem, I'm afraid," said Daniel. "It'll all depend on what happens with Francois and whether he recovers or not."

"He will," said Rosie. "But one thing's for sure, I reckon this isn't the last we shall hear of this."

The others grimly agreed.

"Come on," Daniel said. "Our work is done. Let's go home."

On Tracy Island, it was all go in the kitchen. Zoë and Joanne had managed to get Cassidy, Sian, Karolina, Jodie, Leanna and Kerry to all help out with the cooking of the big Christmas dinner and prepare the table for when the rest of the team returned. Thunderbird 3 had also returned and so Beth and Adrienne were able to assist as well.

They were just putting the finishing touches to the table and about to remove the turkey from the oven. when they heard the distant sound of aircraft engines approaching the island. Cassidy, Leanna, Sian, Beth and Adrienne hurried to the windows of the dining room to watch as the swimming pool opened to allow Thunderbird 1 to land vertically back in its silo whilst at the same time, Thunderbird 2 came into land on its runway before taxiing back into its hangar. However, it still wouldn't be time for dinner yet for Daniel and the girls would need to shower and change into smart clothes.

As Daniel showered, he had several thoughts running through his mind. He wondered what was going to happen once Francois Lemaire did pull through. Would he try and sue International Rescue for the pure reason that he liked to blame them for any damages to what he called his property? What action would he take against his wife for attacking him? Would Madeline still file for divorce despite her deep regrets of the attack? And then there were the thoughts a lot closer to home. Where was The Hood now? When would he next strike? And would they have the power to combat and bring him and his cronies to justice?

In fact, Daniel spent so long pondering all these thoughts that he was startled back to reality by a loud knocking on his en-suite bathroom door.

"Daniel, are you okay in there?" Joanne called from outside.

"Oh, yes, fine!" Daniel called back quickly switching the shower off and reaching out for a towel. He dried himself off only to realise that he'd left his clothes out on the bed.

"Need these?" Joanne asked opening the door slightly and passing them through.

"Thanks," said Daniel, sheepishly as he pulled his trousers on.

Joanne waited outside until he was fully dressed and came into the room.

"How long was I in there?" Daniel asked.

"About twenty minutes," said Joanne. "Everything's ready. We're just waiting on you. Now sit."

Daniel had been looking for his hairbrush only to find that Joanne had got it in her hands. She pushed him down onto a chair and began to brush it for him. This wasn't really necessary, but she just enjoyed doing it.

"Were you thinking again?" Joanne asked.

"Yes," Daniel replied. "Far too much to think about. Don't ask me to list them."

Joanne wasn't thinking of asking him anyway.

Colonel Casey took Madeline to the hospital on the outskirts of Paris where Francois was under observation. It wasn't the intention of Colonel Casey to have Madeline punished for her actions as she had explained the whole story to her. Casey felt she'd questioned Madeline enough and didn't refuse her request to go see her husband.

Francois was in a room on his own, isolated from the other patients. Doctors were keeping a close eye on him, especially as after four hours, he still hadn't regained consciousness. He had also lost a lot of blood and they were becoming concerned by this. He'd been hooked up to a special pump device to give him some fresh blood to replace what he'd lost.

"It's all my fault," Madeline said to Colonel Casey as they looked through the big glass window. "If he doesn't make it, I will never forgive myself."

"Your husband may have said some rather questionably things over the years, especially this morning," said Colonel Casey. "But, he is still a human-being. He's never committed any crimes."

"And I have," said Madeline. "Look at him. That's G-B-H at its finest. I should be imprisoned for this."

"Now, stop it," said Colonel Casey sharply. "Stop beating yourself up, Madeline. Neither of you have any form of criminal record. Nobody is going to send you to prison."

Madeline hung her head. Then raised it again at the sound of a doctor's voice.

"Hey, guys, he's waking up."

Madeline and Colonel Casey looked back through the window. Francois was starting to stir and move around a bit. His eyes slowly opened and looked up at the ceiling. He blinked and looked around at the doctors and nurses scrambling around checking all his stats. Madeline wanted to go in, but Colonel Casey wouldn't let her. At least not until the doctors had given the all-clear.

After fifteen minutes of checks, Madeline was allowed to enter the room to go and speak to her husband. All the hatred that she'd had towards him was gone and replaced by genuine care and concern for him.

"Francois?" Madeline asked in a low voice. "Darling, can you hear me?"

Francois blinked and slowly turned his head towards her.

"Hello, darling," said Madeline with a relieved smile on her face. "How are you feeling?"

But Francois didn't answer at first. He just looked at her with a bewildered expression. "Er…who are you?" he asked hoarsely.

Madeline was a bit taken aback. "Huh?" she said. "Francois, it's me, Madeline. Your wife."

Francois still stared at her, confusion. "Madeline?" he repeated slowly. "But I…don't know anyone called…Madeline. And since when did I ever get married?"

Madeline couldn't believe what she was hearing. Colonel Casey and Dr Straus exchanged looks as a sudden realisation dawned on them both. It seemed as though Francois memory had gone.

Madeline was starting to get desperate. "Darling, it's me!" she cried, tears beginning to fill her eyes. "I am your wife!"

But Francois looked away. "My mother told me never to talk strangers," he said. "Now, get out."

This hit Madeline like an express train. Francois had absolutely no idea who she was. Her heart felt like it had been ripped clean in half. She slowly backed away as her skin went very pale. Then with a sudden scream of despair she collapsed to her knees, bawling her eyes out.

Dr Straus and Colonel Casey came in to remove her from the room whilst Francois looked away across the room. It wasn't completely clear whether he had partially recognised Madeline and remembered what she'd done or whether his memory loss was genuine. If it was, it could be a long time before his memories returned, if they ever did.

Christmas Dinner was always a big thing in anyone's household, and the Tracy family were no exception. All of the trials and tribulations that they had gone through in recent months all seemed to have been forgotten as they tucked in to the delicious turkey, potatoes and vegetables as well as the drink. They pulled crackers and wore colourful paper-hats. Nobody bothered with the jokes because they all agreed Daniel could do a better job than that, despite his being so awful. Even Karolina was seen to smile briefly a few times but not for very long.

"Mmmm, delicious," said Daniel when he'd finished his Yorkshire Pudding. "Mum, Jo. That was as superb as ever."

"What he said," agreed Laura.

"Hear, hear," agreed the others.

Zoë and Joanne beamed proudly.

"You're all very welcome," Zoë said.

"And next will come the huge amount of washing up," Joanne added with a grin.

"What did you think, Leanna?" asked Adrienne. "Seeing as this is your first Christmas with us?"

"Marvelous," Leanna replied. "My family never did anything like this. I've never eaten so much in my life!"

"Glad to hear," said Daniel. He then picked his glass. "This has been excellent, everyone. And now I'd like to propose a toast to our absent friends. A shame that Lady Penelope couldn't join us this year, but another Christmas away from home could only make her family suspicious. Scott, Virgil, John, Gordon, Alan, Brains and Heidi have all done splendid work helping to keep us going. To Martha Casey and Kris Blake for their outside help. And not forgetting of course, our dear friend Kyrano."

Everyone looked round at the empty chair at the end of the table. Normally Kyrano sat in this chair, but no more. Never again would he grace the Tracy Mansion dining table with his presence.

"And I'd like to dedicate this toast, specifically to Kyrano," Daniel said. He held up his glass and all of the others did the same. "To Kyrano."

"Kyrano," everyone except Karolina said and took a swig of their drinks.

"Father," Karolina said and just put hers back down on the table. She hadn't even touched her red wine.

As Leanna looked at everyone's drinks, she couldn't help but notice that the red liquid in Daniel's glass was different to the ones in almost everyone else's. As far as she knew, only Sian and Cassidy weren't drinking red wine for their were too young and were both drinking lemonade instead. "Daniel," Leanna said. "Pardon me for asking, but why is your wine a different colour to the rest of ours?"

Daniel chuckled. "This isn't wine, Leanna," he said. "It's Ribena."

Leanna was completely taken aback. So were Sian and Cassidy who after having spent only a few short Christmases with the Tracy family, had never even noticed this before.

Daniel then cleared his throat. "Jodie," he then said. "Is it time?"

Jodie glanced at her watch. But then she suddenly realised what he meant. "Oh, yes!" she said standing up. "Would you all care to follow me please? There's something you all need to see."

The girls all looked at each other, intrigued as they got up and followed Jodie out of the dining room. But as Daniel was about to follow, he saw that Karolina was still sitting in her chair. "That means you as well, Karolina" he said.

Karolina looked up. "No thanks, Mr Tracy," she said. "I don't feel like it at the…"

"No excuses, Karolina," Daniel said sharply but not rudely. "You're coming too. That's an order."

Karolina was taken aback. But she knew she couldn't argue with Daniel, so she reluctantly got up and walked with him after the others.

Jodie took everyone down to the large underground silo where both Thunderbirds 1 and 3 were housed. Straight away she led them up a flight of stairs that none of them could ever remember seeing before. Cassidy, Joanne, Sian and Zoë rarely came down here so they wouldn't have noticed any major difference, but Laura, Adrienne and Beth were very intrigued as they were the ones who used this regularly, yet none of them had even realised that a new area had been under construction.

"What's going on, Jodie?" asked Laura. "How long has this been here?"

"It's been under construction for the past few months," Jodie replied. "MAX and the other robots that Brains lent us have been working flat-out to get it ready in time."

"In time for what?" asked Beth.

"You'll see, Katie," Jodie said as she reached the top.

As each of them followed Jodie onto the platform with Karolina and Daniel arriving last, they all saw large pad with rails on it yet there was nothing on the top of that. To the left was a tunnel that disappeared into the wall and seemed to tilt from horizontal to vertical. This only confused everyone except for Daniel even more.

Kerry turned to Daniel. "I presume you've known about this?" she asked.

"Of course," Daniel replied. "But I'm going to let Jodie do the talking. Jodie?"

"Thank you, Mr Tracy," said Jodie before addressing everyone. "Now I know that we try not to keep any secrets from each other in this family. But this was one that needed to be kept secret, for it is to be a surprise present. Our ships can do great things, but stealth is not something they're great at. Ever since we became aware of people who wanted to learn and exploit our secrets, it became clear to me and Mr Tracy that we needed a new aircraft that can undertake stealth operations and take down our enemies without them knowing a thing about it. And now we do." She paused as MAX the white articulated robot passed Jodie a small control box. She then pressed the button which activated something inside the tunnel. "Allow me to introduce to you all - Project Shadow, a.k.a. Thunderbird 7!"

Everyone watched as the shadow of something began to appear mounted on a circular yellow platform. Daniel and Jodie grinned as everyone else's eyes went wide with wonder at what now emerged from the darkness. The new aircraft was small but sleek-looking like a stealth fighter-jet. It was mostly black with silver and red lines around the rear section and along its arching tail-fin. It had a cockpit with two seats in it and the rear-mounted wings looked to be folded up. The words 'International Rescue' were just about visible in small writing on the side of the tail with the name 'Thunderbird 7' beside the cockpit and along its long pointed nose. It also had 'TB7' written on its folded-up wings.

"Whoa!" exclaimed the girls. Even Karolina looked blown away by it.

"And there she is," said Jodie. "The latest addition to our fleet. What do you think of her?"

The girls walked around the outside of the new aircraft admiring it from every angle.

"Wow, Jodie," said Katie. "She's incredible!"

"Are these weapons?" asked Wizzy, noticing what looked like machine-guns in the nose.

"They are yes," Jodie said. "You name it, she's got it. Machine-guns, bombs, missiles, torpedoes, even flamethrowers."

Kerry, Zoë and Joanne frowned.

"I thought we were a peaceful organisation?" remarked Zoë.

"All our ships have weapons, remember?" said Daniel. "And you should know, Kerry. Thunderbird 5 has the most powerful one of them all."

"And you have no idea how much I hope it never gets used," Kerry replied.

"What else can she do?" asked Laura.

"There could be some cases where even Thunderbird 7 will struggle to go in," Jodie said. "For example if a bad guy decides to try and hide inside a tunnel. If that's the case then the whole cockpit section will drop out of the bottom and go into motorbike-mode.

"Gosh!" said Wizzy. "This whole section is a motorbike?!"

"Awesome!" exclaimed Sian. "Can I have a go in it?"

Cassidy elbowed her sister. "Hey, you're not leaving me out!" she said indignantly.

Joanne rolled her eyes. "Don't be silly you two," she said. "You're not old enough to fly anything yet."

Leanna was frowning too. "Hang on a second," she said. "If this ship is Thunderbird 7, what happened to Thunderbird 6?"

"Ah, yes," said Daniel stepping forwards. "That's the one other member of the fleet you haven't seen yet, Leanna. But you will, in a few days, seeing as you passed your test."

Leanna's big test of knowledge had been passed with flying colours. All she needed to do now to earn her place on the team was to learn to fly and operate the machines as well as participate in at least three rescue missions in which she participated rather than observe.

"Beth," Daniel continued. "Will you take Leanna out the day after tomorrow?"

"Sure," said Beth with a smile. "Might need to dust some cobwebs off her first though."

"Are you referring to Leanna or Thunderbird 6?" asked Katie cheekily.

Leanna went red in the face as the others burst out laughing. Even Karolina smirked a little.

"Okay, that's enough," Daniel said. He then turned to Karolina. "Karolina, what do you think of her?"

Karolina looked at Thunderbird 7. "She look good," she said. "Who's going to fly her?"

"You are," said Daniel.

Karolina goggled at him in astonishment. So did everyone else except for Jodie.

Adrienne began to splutter. "Dad, are you serious?" she asked.

Daniel looked at her. "Of course," he said. "You got a problem with that, Adie?"

"Er…" said Adrienne looking somewhat awkward. "Well, I've been waiting for my own ship for ages. I thought this was going to be it."

Daniel sighed heavily. "Adie, how many times have we been through this?" he asked, annoyed. "You have already got your ship. Thunderbird 3 belongs to you just as much as it does to Beth. sure, Beth may have the senior role, but that doesn't make Thunderbird 3 entirely Beth's responsibility. You're both responsible for her. Understand?"

Adrienne moved back looking sulky. "Yes, Dad," she said in a low voice.

"Right," said Daniel. "Let's not end Christmas in a bad tone now shall we?" The others agreed as Daniel turned back to Karolina. "So yes, Karolina. I do believe that you said sometime ago that you wanted your own ship. Well, now you do."

Karolina gaped at him, and then at Thunderbird 7. She began to walk forwards for a closer look having not done so yet. The others all moved back to give her space. She looked over every little detail of the craft. From the engines at the back to the pointy nose at the front, and from the weapons to the inside of the cockpit. And then she did the one thing that everyone wanted to see - she grinned. Then she got out and gave both Jodie and then Daniel a very big hug indeed. "Thank you," she said, almost in tears of happiness. "You've saved me from lifelong depression."

Well if that wasn't a compliment then Jodie and Daniel didn't know what was.

"You're welcome, Karolina," said Jodie.

"When can I take her out?" Karolina asked.

"Tomorrow," said Daniel.

"And may I suggest you read through this first?" Jodie added as MAX handed Karolina a book.

"What is this?" Karolina asked.

"The instruction manual," said Jodie with a wink.

Everyone chuckled. And so did Karolina.

"Come on, now," said Zoë. "We've got a lot of washing-up to do before the movie."

Another tradition for the Tracy family at Christmas was to watch a film. Each year it would fall to one of the family to chose a film from their vast collection. This year it was to be Wizzy who chose the film, and not to anyone's surprise had chosen one that involved the sea - The Hunt for Red October.

As everyone headed off, Karolina was left alone with her new aircraft. She marveled at its sleek lines. Standing head-on it looked sinister and deadly. Karolina had never given Daniel or Jodie any clues as to what sort of aircraft she had wanted, and yet incredibly they had got it correct. Thunderbird 7 was everything that she could've dreamed of.

Karolina stayed awake late into the night. She didn't join in the clearing up or join the others to watch the film. Instead she sat herself down on her bed and read the instruction manual. If she was to be the one to pilot it, she needed to be able to know which controls did what and how not to make any mistakes. She wanted to show the others that the passing of her father could no longer affect her role with International Rescue. And it was whilst she was doing this, that a thought suddenly struck her. If she had the power to track down criminals, that meant she now had a perfect weapon to use against her uncle. She grinned delightedly. At last, she thought, she could get her revenge.

Boxing Day, and Karolina could finally do the thing she'd wanted to do for a very long time - take her very own craft out for its first flight. After having breakfast and whilst the other girls went down for a run along the beach, Karolina went to a newly-installed express elevator that would take her down to the new silo area which was located underneath the platform that Thunderbird 7 was standing on. The motorbike cockpit had been lowered down into this new area so that once Karolina was in her uniform which consisted of a light blue and black suit and black leather boots and her own helmet could climb inside and then be raised back up into the main body of Thunderbird 7. With the motorcycle lifted into place, the yellow trolley that the craft was mounted on began to slide backwards tilting upwards through the tunnel a short distance before coming to a stop. The entire rock-face of the mountain on the other side then swiveled round so that the craft was now out in the open and the turntable turned it around 180-degrees so that the nose was now pointing upwards. The wings then folded out and it was ready for launching.

5…4…3…2…1!

The two rocket engines roared into life. The clamps on the underbelly of the aircraft were released and Thunderbird 7 dropped backwards away from the rock-face. It zoomed still standing vertical over the mansion and the lido taking Zoë, Joanne, Kerry, Cassidy and Sian by surprise. Before it spun around to a regular position before rocketing off along the shoreline of the island.

Wizzy was leading Leanna, Laura, Beth, Katie and Adrienne on a sprint around the island's beaches. They had just got around to the far side of the island when Thunderbird 7 roared past them close to the water sending up a massive spray which soaked them all and caused them to cry out in alarm.

"What the blazes?!" exclaimed Adrienne.

All looked up to see Thunderbird 7 climbing away from them.

Karolina grinned delightedly. Thunderbird 7 handled like a dream. "Uncle, you have no idea what's going to hit you!" she said menacingly.


	7. New Beginnings

LEANNA woke bright and early the day after Boxing Day. She was excited. More excited than Christmas Day itself even. Today was the day she was going to take her first flying lesson. Not much had been discussed but she had spent a lot of time wondering which of the Thunderbird crafts she would be given to try first. She had a small hunch that it would be Thunderbird 1 for it was the smallest of the three flying ships and then move on to fly Thunderbird 2 as the final stage.

As Leanna ate her breakfast, Daniel observed her excitement. "You all set?" he asked.

"You bet I am," said Leanna. "I can't wait to get started. So, do I get your ship or Laura's?"

Laura looked up. "Nobody flies my ship but me," she said.

"Unless you're unwell," Daniel said causing Laura to fall silent.

"Actually, Leanna, Thunderbird 1 is the intermediate," said Beth. "Thunderbird 2 is the advanced. For introductory, you will take the controls of Thunderbird 6. And I will be your instructor."

This made Leanna even more excited. Thunderbird 6 was the only one she had not seen yet. Since the unveiling of Thunderbird 7 on Christmas Day, Leanna had been wondering what it could be as it hadn't even been mentioned before that she could remember.

"Once you've finished, you can go and see Jodie for your uniform," Daniel continued.

"But don't eat it too quickly or you'll make yourself ill," added Joanne. "That wouldn't do any good."

Leanna tried to calm herself down but found it wasn't easy to do so.

Jodie was in her laboratory with MAX when Leanna arrived. There was a very fast knocking on the door.

"Come in, Leanna," Jodie said.

Leanna entered, looking somewhat taken aback. "How did you know it was me?" she asked.

"That's the knock from someone who is excited," Jodie replied with a smile. "And nobody's knocked on my door like that for a long time."

Jodie and MAX then moved backwards revealing what they'd been working on. Leanna's eyes went wide with wonder. Her very own uniform stood in front of her. It resembled Laura's in a lot of ways, except for one thing - the utility sash, which was brown and not grey. Also the actual equipment that went with the sash wasn't included for that would come at a later stage.

"What do you think?" Jodie asked.

"It's wonderful," Leanna said. "Can I try it on?"

"By all means," said Jodie.

Leanna almost ran up to the uniform. Robotic arms operated by MAX took the uniform apart and then attached it to Leanna's body. Within thirty seconds, all was in place. Leanna went over to the mirror and took a good long look at herself from every angle. She was totally awestruck by it all.

"How's the fit?" Jodie asked. "Not too tight?"

"Not tight at all, Jodie," Leanna replied. "It fits perfectly."

"My lords and ladies!" said a voice.

Jodie and Leanna looked round to see Daniel had entered the room.

"Very smart-looking, Leanna," said Daniel. "I approve."

Leanna blushed. "Thank you, Daniel," she said happily.

Daniel smiled. "Well, if you're ready, Beth is waiting for you down in Thunderbird 2's hangar. I shall be listening in and watching all that happens. Best of luck."

"Thanks," said Leanna. "This is going to be awesome!"

Daniel and Jodie watched as Leanna almost skipped out of the room with excitement. MAX let out a confused warble.

"Do you really think she's ready for this,, Mr Tracy?" Jodie asked. "From what I remember, all of the other girls took their flying tests very seriously. She doesn't seem to be."

"She's excited, but the others did their tests on fast jets," Daniel replied. "I don't think she'll have too much trouble with Thunderbird 6. And even if she does, Beth will be there to take over if need be."

Leanna arrived in Thunderbird 2's vast hangar and found Beth already suited up in her uniform waiting for her.

"Ah, you're here, Leanna," Beth said. "Shall we begin?"

"Yes!" said Leanna excitedly. "I can't wait for this. Where is Thunderbird 6?"

"Right through here," said Beth leading Leanna through a small door at the side of the hangar. "I have managed to dust off most of the cobwebs and cleaned her up a bit. She hasn't been outside for quite some time. Definitely not since you've been here."

Leanna followed Beth through the door and almost fell over in surprise after Beth had switched on the lights. She had been expecting a small jet of some kind at least. But instead what she found herself looking at was a small yellow and red de Havilland Tiger-Moth Bi-Plane. "Okay…what…is…that?!" she asked once she had found her voice again.

"This is Thunderbird 6," Beth said. "Only been used on one rescue mission and that was before it was officially named Thunderbird 6. It saved my life, and Lady Penelope, Parker and Karolina's lives as well."

Leanna looked around the small aircraft. "How exactly?" she asked, not sounding convinced.

"Skyship One," said Beth. "Struck the top of an early-warning tower. Thunderbirds 1 or 2 couldn't get in close to evacuate us so this was used to get us off."

Leanna was somewhat speechless. "And…this is what I'm going to be flying?" she asked.

"To begin with yes," said Beth. "My guess however is that you'll become part of the Thunderbird 2 crew with Dad, Katie and Wizzy. You'll be taught how to operate the pod vehicles such as The Mole. but there could come a time when you might need to operate one of the main ships. And for that, you need to be trained in that. So to begin with, we'll start with something nice and simple - Thunderbird 6."

"Please tell me that I'm dreaming," Leanna said, unable to take her eyes off the Bi-Plane.

Beth laughed. "You most certainly are not, Leanna," she said. "Now come on, let's do it. Front cockpit please."

Leanna reluctantly climbed into the front cockpit of the aircraft whilst Beth walked round to the front where the propeller was. She then instructed Leanna to do a few checks before giving the propeller a pull. To their surprise it started first time without any trouble, despite having not been used for a long time.

"That's my girl," said Beth.

"I thought Thunderbird 3 was your girl?" asked Leanna.

"No, Thunderbird 3's my baby," Beth answered. "I've been wanting to give Thunderbird 6 to someone else to take care of. Adrienne and I have too much to do with Thunderbird 3."

I'm not surprised, Leanna thought to herself looking at the few cobwebs in the wing supports that had been missed.

Beth then climbed into the rear cockpit. "You want me to take her out or do you want to?" she asked.

"You do it," said Leanna. "I want to see how it's done."

"Very well," said Beth. "But I will give you control at some point during the flight."

Leanna's stomach lurched. She'd gone from being very excited to very nervous.

"Thunderbird 6 to control," Beth said into her helmet radio for the Tiger-Moth wasn't equipped with a radio. "We're ready to taxi."

"Understood, Beth," Daniel's voice answered. "Hangar doors are opening. Let me know when you are ready."

The big door in front of them opened to reveal the large area that Thunderbird 2 moved forwards into before it would turn and head out onto the runway. As they started to move forwards the cliff door opened out as well.

Laura, Katie, Adrienne and Wizzy were standing on the balcony on the cliff house overlooking the runway to observe what happened next.

"Do you think Leanna will be in charge first or Beth?" Wizzy asked.

"Beth will be," Laura answered. "She'll want Leanna to observe first of all before she's allowed to be allowed out on her own."

"Could be a while then," said Adrienne. "You know Leanna's not the quickest learner."

Laura scowled at her sister. "Does that really?" she asked. "These things are supposed to take time."

"Hush!" Katie said. "I think they're coming."

They all peered down and listened. Sure enough they could hear the sound of a propeller engines from inside. Then Thunderbird 6 slowly emerged outside on the runway before coming to a stop just before the palm trees which fell back despite there being no need for them to do. Thunderbird 6 could've easily fit through.

"GOOD LUCK, LEANNA!" Wizzy called.

Leanna and Beth looked up to see them waving. Leanna was startled by this, but Beth just grinned for she knew they would be there.

"We're ready, Dad," said Beth.

"Clear to go," Daniel replied. "Good luck. Have fun, Leanna."

"Er, thanks, Daniel," Leanna replied. Her nerves were almost at breaking point. Then she took a deep and calmed herself. She didn't want the others to notice.

5…4…3…2…1!

Thunderbird 6's engine powered up and it accelerated down the runway. Faster and faster it went until it gained enough lift to rise up off the runway into the sky. The sound of its engine filled the air as it banked round to the left to begin an anti-clockwise orbit of Tracy Island.

This was very strange for Leanna. She had flown in Thunderbird 2 before and it had felt completely normal because it was all enclosed like being on an airliner. But Thunderbird 6 was a very different feeling for it was an open cockpit. She was glad she'd got her new helmet to keep the wind out of her face as she could feel it rushing around her. But at the same time, the fear that she'd had on the ground had vanished. She looked out to the left and saw Tracy Island. She'd not had the chance to view it properly in the air before so to see it now was very unique and incredible.

"Wow!" Leanna gasped. "It's so beautiful."

"That's what you said when you first saw the island if I recall correctly?" Beth said.

That was a day Leanna longed to forget but would always remember - the day she was abducted from her village and kept prisoner by a Russian gangster and several armoured cronies before being found by Daniel and the girls. As her parents were missing, Leanna had been brought back to Tracy Island, and despite all her sadness, the first sight of Tracy Island had taken her breath away.

"What do you think so far?" Beth asked.

"This is great," said Leanna. Grinning from ear to ear. "Can I have a go?"

"Let's do a round trip of the island first," said Beth. "Then you can take your turn."

"She's such a great plane," said Leanna.

"Aeroplane, Leanna," Beth quickly corrected her. "Never call it a plane."

"Okay…" said Leanna, slightly taken aback by this.

Daniel and Joanne stood at the window in the lounge and watched as Thunderbird 6 flew along over the sea. Cassidy and Sian were out on the patio and turned to wave. Jodie, Rosie and Zoë watched from inside the kitchen.

"She seems to be enjoying herself," remarked Cassidy.

"Would we ever get to become out with you as well?" asked Sian.

Daniel and Joanne looked at them.

"That I couldn't say," said Daniel. "Depends on what your mother thinks."

Joanne looked at Daniel and then at her daughters. "You're both a bit young still," she said. "But then your girls were their age when they started training. I'll give it some thought."

Just then Kerry interrupted. She had returned to Thunderbird 5 early that morning. "Morning all," she said. "I'm afraid we've got a couple of situations that could need attending to."

"Could?" Daniel repeated. "Either we do or we don't, Kerry. What would they be?"

"Firstly an oil tanker is on fire in the South Atlantic just off the coast of Africa," said Kerry. "The crew have been able to evacuate but there are no means of putting out the fire."

Daniel nodded. "And the second?"

"This one I have no definite confirmation about," said Kerry. "But there seems to be some disturbance at the Channel Tunnel."

"Hmmm," said Daniel thoughtfully. "We can use Thunderbird 2 to put out the fire and rescue the crew. But what to do about the tunnel?"

"Lady Penelope perhaps?" suggested Sian.

"Yes!" said Daniel approvingly. "Excellent idea. Kerry, contact Penny and ask her to investigate this. We'll take Thunderbird 2 and proceed to the tanker, and if Penny says we're needed at the tunnel we can head there afterwards."

"F-A-B," said Kerry. "Good luck."

Daniel then contacted the girls on the cliff house balcony. "Katie, Adie, Wizzy - we have a situation. Meet me in Thunderbird 2 right away."

"F-A-B, Dad," the three girls acknowledged. They left Laura on the balcony and headed inside to get into their uniforms.

Daniel then turned to Jodie who'd entered. "Keep monitoring Thunderbird 6 and make sure Leanna is doing as she's told," he said. "I do trust Beth to look after her, but just keep an extra watch out."

"Sure thing, Mr Tracy," said Jodie as Daniel hurried over to the rocket-painting.

Thunderbird 6 had almost completed its first orbit of the island when Jodie contacted them. "Thunderbird 6, be advised. Thunderbird 2 is preparing for take-off. Keep clear of runway until it has cleared."

"F-A-B, Jodie," Beth replied. "Leanna, once Thunderbird 2 has gone, then you can have your turn."

Keeping the Tiger-Moth as high as possible, they looked down towards the island to see Thunderbird 2 emerging from the hangar. The palm trees fell back again to allow it to pass before it came to rest on its ramp. The ramp lifted upwards with the blast shield lifting into place as well.

5…4…3…2…1!

Even though there was wind noise, Leanna and Beth easily heard Thunderbird 2's engines roar as it soared off the ramp and climbed away from the island turning right to head East towards the South Atlantic.

"All clear now," said Beth. "She's all yours, Leanna. Just keep her steady."

Leanna took the controls of Thunderbird 6 and now found herself in charge of it. It was a feeling that she had never experienced before. One of power and authority for the aircraft was now doing what she wanted it to do. "How do I loop-the-loop?" she asked.

"Easy now, cowgirl," warned Beth. "You've only had the controls for two minutes. Let's not cause her any damage now."

"Damage?" asked Leanna. "She looks quite sturdy to me."

"The G-forces in turns and loops could easily rip an aircraft apart if its not done properly," said Beth. "And believe me, Leanna, I've seen what happens when it does."

Leanna gulped and decided to keep flying the aircraft straight.

Lady Penelope was in the Drawing Room of her mansion having tea when the teapot started beeping. "That must be Daniel," she said turning the top of the pot to activate the radio within. "International Rescue - Lady Penelope speaking."

"Hello, Penny. Kerry here."

"Kerry, hello," said Penelope. "What can I do for you?"

"I've been hearing reports of an incident at the Channel Tunnel," Kerry said. "No clear idea as to what the situation is though. Daniel's already out in Thunderbird 2 dealing with a tanker fire. Could you go and see what's going on?"

"But of course, Kerry," said Penelope. "I've been bored out of my skin the past few days. We'll go out straight away."

"F-A-B," said Kerry. "If its a situation that requires International Rescue then let us know immediately so I can direct Thunderbird 2 to assist."

"Will do, Kerry," said Penelope. "Over and out." She put the teapot down and got up to pull the bell.

Within thirty seconds of the bell ringing, the doors opened to reveal Parker. "You rang, m'lady?"

"Yes, Parker," said Penelope. "Get out the Rolls-Royce. We could have a situation."

So whilst Penelope put on her coat and boots, Parker changed from his butler outfit to his chauffeur's uniform and hurried round to the garage. By the time Penelope was ready and walking down the front steps of the house, FAB1 was pulling up on the gravel in front. Parker quickly got out and opened the door to allow her to step into the back. Once she was in, he closed the door and lifted his hat before getting back into the driver's seat.

"Where to, m'lady?" asked Parker as they headed down the driveway.

"The Channel Tunnel, Parker," replied Penelope. "Kerry's heard reports of a disturbance and wants us to find out what. And full speed - people's lives could be in danger."

So once FAB1 was out on the road, Parker put his foot down with FAB1 racing down the country road towards the motorway.

Further down the road, a Police Car was resting in a layby. Two officers, PC Mike Andrews who was a veteran of many years work, and WPC Shona Lewis, fresh out of training school was only on her second shift in a traffic car. They had expected a quiet afternoon when FAB1 came rushing past them.

"Goodness me!" exclaimed WPC Lewis turning on the car's engine but to her surprise, PC Andrews stopped her.

"No, let them be," PC Andrews said. "Her Ladyship never causes trouble."

WPC Lewis was at a loss for words. She thought their job was to stop people speeding. What special permission could Lady Penelope have whereas everyone else would have been arrested for speeding if they were caught, she thought.

Thunderbird 2 was now flying over the South Atlantic. The weather had taken a turn for the worse. The bright blue sky they had had over the Pacific was now grey and windy. Luckily it wasn't stormy but there was a little rain in the air.

"Thunderbird 5, we're approaching the Danger Zone," Daniel said into the radio. "Any updates?"

"Not yet, Thunderbird 2," Kerry replied. "Lady Penelope is on her way to the Channel Tunnel now."

"Let's hope that's nothing serious," said Daniel. "Chances are we'd have to return to base in order to change pods which would be time-consuming."

"Agreed," said Kerry. "Do you have a visual on the tanker?"

"There," said Wizzy pointing to an orange glow in the distance.

"That's affirmative," said Daniel. "Going in now."

"F-A-B," said Kerry. "Be careful."

Thunderbird 2 slowed down as it approached the burning tanker - Latitude was its name, and it was a big one. All the crew had managed to escape in life-rafts but the tanker was completely engulfed in fire. It also appeared to be listing over to port as though it was taking on water.

"Jodie, we're over the tanker," Daniel said. "Is there any specific way that we should tackle this?"

"I'm not detecting any oil-spills which is lucky," Jodie replied. "Just use the foam from the tanks. That should be enough."

"Understood," said Daniel. "Adie, what's the status of the life-rafts?"

"According to radar, both life-rafts are clear," Adrienne replied.

"Good, then they're out of danger," said Daniel. "Katie, commence attack run."

"You got it, Dad," Katie replied. She began to move Thunderbird 2 away from the burning Latitude, much to the surprise of the crew.

"Where are they going?" asked one of the crewmen. "They can't just leave us here!"

"No, wait!" shouted another. "They're turning back."

The hatch in the bottom of the pod had opened and a small crane arm with three silver nitro-glycerine canisters had been lowered out. Then with a whine of its engines, it began to approach the tanker to fly directly over the top and along the full length of it. As they began to fly over the bow, Daniel released the first canister. It dropped like a bomb from a military aircraft down into the inferno and detonated. Once Thunderbird 2 had passed over the full-length of the ship, it turned around so they could see the result. It wasn't good. Roughly a third of the fire had been extinguished. The rest of the tanker was still burning. Two massive explosions ripped through it and the force almost lifted it out of the water.

"Anymore explosions like that and it could be ripped in half," Jodie said, having been watching the action via Thunderbird 2's cameras. "Mr Tracy, you're going to have to hurry this up."

"Katie, take us in again," Daniel said. "We'll have to drop both this time."

"F-A-B," said Katie applying power to Thunderbird 2's engines again.

The crew of the Latitude watched as the green leviathan made its second pass over their ship. Both the remaining containers were released and dropped down into the fire. Both detonated engulfing the flames in a white mist.

Katie turned Thunderbird 2 round again. She, Wizzy, Daniel and Adrienne could only watch and hope that their method had worked. After a few tense moments, the white mist began to clear. The flames flickered, and then died. The fire was out.

"Phew!" gasped Wizzy. "That was close."

"You can say that again," said Daniel. "Base and Thunderbird 5 from Thunderbird 2. The fire is out. I repeat - the fire is out."

"Good news, Thunderbird 2," said Kerry. "I've directed two salvage tugs to recover the tanker so you can take the crew to the nearest hospital."

"Thanks, Kerry," said Daniel. "Thunderbird 2 out."

Leanna was having the time of her life. With every twist and turn she made in Thunderbird 6, she was gaining more confidence which was pleasing Beth.

"Not bad, Leanna," Beth said. "Another couple of days of lessons and you'll be able to fly this thing with a blindfold on."

"I could do that?" asked Leanna.

"Could, but not recommended," Beth laughed. "You might crash. Now, we'd best get back. She's got limited fuel."

Leanna didn't want to go back yet. She was having too much fun. But Beth had taken back control of the Tiger-Moth so there was nothing she could do about it.

As Thunderbird 6 was landing back on the runway, Kerry was talking to Jodie about another situation that she'd just been informed of.

"After lunch we can go back out," Beth said to Leanna as they entered the lounge.

"Not quite, Beth," said Jodie. "Laura might have to take over. You're needed."

"I am?" asked Beth. "What's occuring?"

"A space-junk disposer has gone AWOL," explained Kerry over the holoprojector. "It appears to have suffered damage after being hit by another piece of space-junk. Now it's attacking anything that its detects. It needs to be stopped before it attacks a manned satellite."

"I'm on it," said Beth. "Give me more info when I'm in orbit." She then headed over to one of the seats that would take her down to Thunderbird 3.

"Why you still here, Laura?" asked Leanna. "I thought you'd have gone with the others?"

"Not much for me to do with what they were dealing with," Laura replied. "All I would've done is fly and hover and waste fuel. I can take you back out later if Beth's not back."

Beth was soon back in her suit again, having only been out of it for a few minutes and was boarding Thunderbird 3. It wasn't often that she went out alone, but this was one of the few. Once the outer doors were closed and secure, the blast door swiveled round sealing it off from the rest of the silo. "All systems complete," Beth said. "Ready for launching."

5…4…3…2…1!

Thunderbird 3 roared into life and lifted off through the Roundhouse before climbing towards space.

FAB1 was driving along towards London. It would then loop around the city before heading through Kent to reach the Channel Tunnel. They had been listening to the radio for any news reports but so far they'd not heard a thing regarding any issues there.

"H'are you sure there's trouble there, m'lady?" asked Parker.

"Well, we don't know for sure, Parker," replied Penelope. "But I have to say, if there was trouble, we'd be hearing all about it on the news. There's something rather odd going on. I think maybe I'll give them a call and see what's what."

But as Penelope was reaching for the phone on the back on Parker's seat, a rather battered old pick-up truck pulled up alongside them. He was driving very close to them. Too close in fact. As Parker looked over, he saw a man with scruffy brown hair and a moustache driving. The man was also wearing sunglasses.

Annoyed, Parker opened the window. "OI, MATE! MOVE OVER!" he shouted.

The truck driver didn't reply. Instead he fired a small tranquilizer dart from a pistol into Parker's neck. Penelope gasped in horror as Parker slumped over to the side turning the wheel and causing FAB1 to smash through the fence. It tipped over and rolled down the embankment before coming to rest at the bottom of the field about a fifty metres from the motorway. Once it came to rest, both Penelope and Parker were out cold.

The truck driver stopped on the hard shoulder and stepped out of the vehicle. He looked down the hill at FAB1 which had come to rest upright. "Excellent!" the driver said. "Now for the next step of my plan." He then dialed a number in his phone. "I have them," he said. "Proceed."

"Yes, boss," the voice of Transom over the phone.

The driver was The Hood in disguise. He walked down the hill towards FAB1. He looked at Penelope and Parker. "I have no use for the fool of a butler," The Hood remarked. "But Lady Penelope - she will be the perfect bait for International Rescue!" He then somehow managed to open the rear doors of FAB1 and lifted the unconscious Penelope out before carrying her back up the hill to the pick-up truck. He had to be careful that no other motorists saw what he was doing. He had already positioned the truck to hide the large hole in the fence where FAB1 had crashed through. After putting Penelope into the back of the pick-up truck, he then proceeded to tightly bind her hands and feet so that she couldn't escape. Penelope had started to regain consciousness only for The Hood to gag her with black duct-tape. Her shouts were silenced as The Hood then used chloroform to put her to sleep again. "Calm yourself down, Lady Penelope," said The Hood. "We have a long journey ahead of us." He then climbed back into the driver's seat and headed off, taking Penelope with him.

Thunderbird 3 was now in space and heading to the location that Kerry had given Beth.

"So what's the deal with this Zap-1 did you say it was called?" Beth asked.

"NASA's latest project to get rid of all the space-junk," Kerry replied. "It's been designed to seek out and destroy all space-junk with its highly-lethal laser-cannon. It managed to dispose of its first target, part of the old International Space-Station without any incident. But then another piece which was unidentified went unnoticed by its sensors and they collided. The collision caused a malfunction in Zap-1's systems and its been going haywire. Anything that appears within a fifty metre radius of it gets disintegrated."

"Okay…" said Beth. "And have NASA asked for our assistance?"

"Not officially," said Kerry. "But they've not got anything that can can stop it. Their only craft with a long-range weapon is Zap-1. That's why I've asked you to dispose of it. You should be able to disable it before it even detects your presence."

"Right…" said Beth, feeling a little uneasy. "This is going to be fun."

"According to my scans, you'll be coming in from behind," said Kerry. "Its weapon is on the front. If you can stay behind it, you've got no issues."

"Here's hoping," said Beth. "I don't want another long and dangerous chase like Alan and I had with that space-mine."

"No, and I'm sure NASA didn't fit Zap-1 with a kill-code," said Kerry. "Most likely they thought their new weapons was indestructible."

Beth flew Thunderbird 3 around the planet until she caught sight of a mysterious green flash of light in the distance. It looked like a laser-blast. "I think I have visual," she said zooming in with the nose camera. "Yes, I do. It's just taken out another piece of junk."

"You need to be quick, Beth," said Kerry. "If it continues on its current course, it's going to get within striking distance of the Worldwide Space-Station."

"And if it did, people will die," said Beth. "They'll have no defence against it and I'm not going to let that happen."

"Good girl," said Kerry. "Be careful."

As Beth approached the rogue spacecraft, she began to see it more clearly. It was very small, not even a third of the size of Thunderbird 3. It fact it was probably the same size as Thunderbird 6 if not smaller. That did not mean that the weaponry was superior as she soon saw for herself as Zap-1 approached another piece of debris. It fired its green laser and obliterated it completely.

"Ouch!" remarked Beth, shivering slightly. "I'm going to have to take this very carefully."

"Make sure your stealth-mode is working, Thunderbird 3," said Jodie. "It might not before enough to keep you hidden from Zap-1 but at least anyone from NASA observing the footage won't see you."

"In other words, we want them to think they've stopped it," said Beth. "Got it." She continued to ease Thunderbird 3 forwards and hoped that Zap-1 wouldn't turn around.

On a leafy country lane in Kent, a motorbike and sidecar was speeding along. Riding on the motorbike itself was Mullion with Transom in the side-car. It was them who'd caused trouble at the Channel Tunnel. Not in the tunnel itself but by detonating a small bomb in the customs area. Nobody had been killed luckily but there had been a few injuries which the Paramedics were now taking care of.

Now that The Hood had kidnapped Lady Penelope, Mullion and Transom were heading for their next objective, to cause another distraction at a military base near Dover. They were full of confidence for they felt that nobody would be suspicious of them.

"Only a few more miles and we'll be there," Mullion said.

"And with the RAF's people confused, nobody will notice when the boss makes his escape with his hostage," said Transom with delight.

But as they continued along, the sunlight seemed to disappear and they found themselves caught in a shadow. Looking around, they saw that this shadow was a very unusual shape. They then looked up and stared in surprise for a stealthy black aircraft was flying directly above them. It was Thunderbird 7, but of course they had never seen it before so had no idea what it was.

"What?!" exclaimed Transom. "How could the military know where we were?!"

"Hang on, I'll lose them!" said Mullion, revving the motorbike's engine and racing off.

Karolina watched from the cockpit and smirked. "You can run, but you can't hide from me," she said.

Mullion took a sharp left at a junction almost causing the bike and sidecar to tip over. They thought that they could escape this way, but to their dismay, Thunderbird 7 turned straight after them and continued to pursue.

"Keep driving," said Transom. "I'll soon get rid of these idiots." She picked up a machine-gun before turning herself around and shooting up at their pursuer.

Karolina scoffed loudly as the bullets harmlessly bounced off the hull. "Pathetic," she said. "My turn." She activated Thunderbird 7's own machine-guns and began to fire back. Transom shrieked covering her head and ducking down into the sidecar whilst Mullion weaved the bike about trying to dodge the bullets.

Karolina's concentration was then broken by Kerry. "Thunderbird 7, my scans are registering you're in England," she said. "What's going on, Karolina? I thought you were training?"

"I've found Transom and Mullion," Karolina said. "I'm going to make them talk."

"What? Are you crazy?" Kerry exclaimed. "Karolina, we've not had any info since…wait a second, how did you find them?!"

"When I hear about disturbance at Channel Tunnel I went to investigate," said Karolina. "Then I see a motorbike and sidecar fleeing the scene. I recognise make of bike from my uncle's organisation."

Before Kerry could reply, Karolina switched off her comms so that Kerry couldn't disturb her. She had to make sure that Mullion and Transom did not get away from her.

Transom then spotted what she hoped would be an escape route. "There's a tunnel!" she shouted. "Go hide in there!"

Mullion complied and raced the bike towards the tunnel. "They won't be able to follow us now!" he jeered as they entered it.

But Karolina had her own surprise in store. She brought Thunderbird 7 down close to the road before releasing the motorbike cockpit from the rest of the aircraft. She revved the engine and rocketed off after them. Mullion and Transom were already in the tunnel and hadn't seen the separation. They thought they'd got away but found the tunnel wasn't as long as they thought it was.

"No matter, whoever's in that plane can't follow us through here," said Mullion.

But he was wrong. No sooner were they outside when they saw Thunderbird 7 flying over them. They blinked and stared up at it for there was now a section of it missing.

"What the hell?" said Transom. "Is it some kind of drone?"

Suddenly, their bike lurched and began to slow down. They looked back to see the cockpit motorbike was right behind them having followed them through the tunnel and attached a grappling hook to theirs.

"GET AWAY FROM US!" Transom shouted firing her pistol at the bike. The bullets just bounced off as Karolina continued to apply her brakes and slow them down.

Mullion roared as he continued to rev his bike's engine trying to pull free. Karolina smiled before she released the cable and they shot forwards like a missile, heading straight off the road and smashing into a tree. Both fell to the ground, winded.

Beth thought that Zap-1 was basically a miniature version of the Fireball fleet from the World Space Patrol due to the shape of its hull, wings and tail only the nose where the laser was mounted was the difference.

"How are you doing, Thunderbird 3?" Kerry asked.

"Getting there, Thunderbird 5," Beth replied. "Almost in range."

But then there was trouble. Another piece of space-junk floated up past Zap-1 and it ended up turning to face it. It fired its laser again and destroyed it. But due to the angle it was now at, its sensors suddenly locked onto Thunderbird 3.

"Oh, my God!" Beth gasped. "It's spotted me!"

"Beth, get out of there!" Jodie shouted.

Beth fired Thunderbird 3's main boosters and quickly turned and raced away. But Zap-1 was locked on and set off in pursuit.

"Goddamnit!" Beth said angrily. "This was exactly what I didn't want to hap- WOAH!"

Zap-1 had just fired its laser but had missed when Beth sharply turned Thunderbird 3 away at the last second. The Artificial Intelligence in Zap-1's programming was taken by surprise for it had not yet missed any targets it had encountered.

"Beth, you need to stop it now," said Kerry.

"And how the hell am I supposed to do that?!" asked Beth. "If I turn completely I'd give it the perfect opportunity to fire upon me!"

"Then don't," said Jodie. "There's an old Chinese military satellite not far from your current position. If you can get Thunderbird 3 round behind it, Zap-1 should target that instead which will give you time to get in position to fire back."

Beth looked over and caught sight of the satellite in question. "It's not that big, Jodie," she said as she dodged another blast from Zap-1. "I'm not sure it'd completely block me out from it."

"You have to try," said Jodie. "That thing's a danger to anything in orbit. You have to take it out."

"What else am I going to do?" Beth remarked sarcastically as she raced towards the disused satellite. As Thunderbird 3 passed behind the satellite, Zap-1's sensors lost contact and instead locked on to the satellite instead. However, Beth knew she wasn't out of danger yet. Once Zap-1 had destroyed the satellite, it would most likely locate and lock onto Thunderbird 3 again. She needed to destroy it whilst it was distracted. "It's working!" said Beth. "It's going to attack the satellite."

"This is your chance," said Jodie. "Lock on and fire."

Beth had to work twice as hard as usual. Normally it was Adrienne who operated the other systems of Thunderbird 3, but with Adrienne out with Thunderbird 2, she had to do it all. Spinning Thunderbird 3 around to face Zap-1, she quickly used her sharp eyes and reflexes to lock Thunderbird 3's own laser onto it. She was just in time for Zap-1 fired its laser. It blew the old satellite to smithereens. This was her chance. She slammed her finger down on the button and a yellow laser blast shot out from Thunderbird 3's nose. It struck Zap-1 and blew it apart instantly.

Beth breathed a big sigh of relief. "Gotcha!" she said.

Kerry and Jodie were relieved too.

"Well done, Thunderbird 3," said Kerry. "Return to base."

"F-A-B, Thunderbird 5," said Beth. "Be home in twenty minutes."

As Beth signed off, Jodie spoke to Kerry. "What do you think NASA will say about this?" she asked.

"They can say what they like, Jodie," Kerry replied. "If they do have video evidence, we'll simply tell them the truth and that it would've been a danger to the WSS."

Jodie nodded. "How are the others doing?"

Kerry checked her monitors. "Let's see. Thunderbird 2's dropping off the crew of the tanker at hospital in Cape Town. Looks like Thunderbird 7's stopped chasing guessing that Karolina's either caught Transom and Mullion or has lost them. In fact, Jodie, could you re-open the communications link for she seems to have cut it off."

Jodie frowned. "Why do I think she's taking this too personally?" she asked.

"I can't blame her for it being personal for she wants her uncle to pay," Kerry said. "But I'm getting a bit worried that she'll go too far."

Jodie typed into the computer. "Might take me a few minutes," she said. "I'll let you know when it is done."

Just then Daniel called in. "Base and Thunderbird 5 from Thunderbird 2. We're about to arrive at the hospital. Any news from Lady Penelope about the Channel Tunnel?"

"Not yet," said Kerry. "Now you've mentioned it, she should've been there by now. Hang on." She moved the hologram map of the Earth to England and made it bigger. She frowned, worried, for FAB1's icon wasn't anywhere near the Channel Tunnel. In fact, it hadn't even reached London yet. "That can't be right," she said. "Guys, FAB1's stopped along the M-1 motorway for some….wait, the icon's not even on the motorway! It's off on the side!"

Daniel, Katie and Jodie now frowned too. This didn't sound right at all.

"Can you call them?" Daniel asked.

"Going to now," said Kerry. "I'll patch you both in." She pressed FAB1's icon. Thunderbird 5 calling FAB1, do you read me? FAB1, come in."

But there was no reply.

"This isn't right," said Daniel. "Something's wrong. Keep trying, Kerry. We'll head to England once we've dropped these guys off."

Mullion and Transom woke up to find themselves handcuffed and tied to the same tree that their motorcycle and sidecar had crashed into. As they struggled to free themselves, they then saw Karolina approaching them with a rather smug smile on her face. Her cockpit motorbike was parked by the side of the road.

"YOU?!" shrieked Transom. "HOW DID YOU FIND US?!"

"I have my methods," Karolina said. "And I know that it was you who caused that disturbance at the Channel Tunnel. What was your reason? To create another emergency for International Rescue?"

"You think we're going to tell you anything, you can forget it, bitch!" spat Mullion.

Karolina just smirked and took a pair of tweezers out from her utility belt. She then walked right up to Mullion and placed it under his nose. "Not talking, hmm?" she asked. "Maybe this'll change your mind." And she pulled one of his nose-hairs out causing him to scream.

"DON'T TOUCH HIM!" shrieked Transom. She tried to kick Karolina but missed. Karolina spun and grabbed Transom's leg and pulled it upwards. "OWOWOWOW!" Transom screamed. "YOU'RE HURTING ME!"

"Good," said Karolina. "Where's my uncle?"

"WITH YOUR LONDON AGENT!" Transom shouted. "He's taking her away to kill her!"

Karolina glared. She loosened her grip. "What are you talking about?" she demanded.

"The tunnel was a decoy," said Mullion. "We knew that International Rescue would more likely go to the burning tanker, meaning they would send their London agent to investigate the Channel Tunnel."

Karolina's earpiece then buzzed. "Karolina, come in!" Kerry's voice said crossly.

Karolina sighed, annoyed. "I'm busy!" she retorted.

"So we gathered," Daniel's voice now said. "What are you playing at, Karolina?"

"Getting information about my uncle from his two dimwits," Karolina said.

"By physical torture?" asked Daniel. "That's not how we do things!"

"No, but it's how I do things," said Karolina coldly.

"OI, TRACY!" Mullion yelled hoping Daniel could hear. "THE BOSS HAS GOT YOUR FRIEND. HOPE YOU DON'T THINK THAT YOU CAN SAVE HER, CAUSE YOU CAN'T!"

"What's he talking about?" Daniel asked.

"Ignore him, Mr Tracy," said Karolina, letting go of Transom's leg and walking back up to Mullion. "He's just trying to scare us."

FAB1's crash had finally been discovered and the emergency services were on the scene. Parker was starting to regain consciousness. He wasn't hurt luckily but rather dazed as two Policemen helped him out of the car.

"Are you okay, sir?" asked PC Taz, the taller of the two Policemen.

"Cor, me 'ead!" groaned Parker. "I've never felt so h'ill in h'all me life!"

The shorter Policemen was called PC Menkin. He had seen something small in the side of Parker's neck. "Hold still, sir," he said and he carefully pulled it out.

"What is that?" asked PC Taz.

"Looks like a tranq dart," said PC Menkin.

Then Parker began to remember. "H'oh, h'of course! That truck driver!" he said. "It was 'im who did it! Wait until h'I…" He'd broken off suddenly for he'd seen the rear of FAB1 was empty. "Where's 'er Ladyship?" he asked. "Is she h'in one h'of them Ambulances?"

The two Policemen exchanged a look.

"You mean there was someone else with you, sir?" asked PC Menkin.

"You were the only one we've found," added PC Taz.

The colour drained from Parker's face as realisation dawned on him. He refused medical treatment and began to search the surrounding area for Lady Penelope. But there were no clues that anyone could find. Parker was now starting to realise that this could only mean one thing. "I'd better contact Mr Tracy," he said. "H'I do believe 'er Ladyship h'as been snatched!"

At Daniel's urging, Karolina was trying to force Mullion and Transom into talking. "WHERE ARE THEY?!" she roared punching Mullion in the face before going over and doing the same to Transom. "WHAT WOULD MY UNCLE WANT WITH LADY PENELOPE?!"

"To get revenge on you all of course," said Transom with a sneer. "You kicked him off your island, and he wasn't at all happy about that."

Before Karolina could say or do anything else, an alarm started blaring out from the cockpit bike. The exact same alarm also started sounding in Thunderbird 5, Thunderbird 2, Thunderbird 3 and on Tracy Island. It was the one sound that none of them wanted to hear.

"Emergency alarm!" Daniel exclaimed.

"Where's it coming from?" asked Adrienne.

Kerry checked on the map. "FAB1!" she exclaimed and pressed the button. "FAB1, come in!"

Parker's red and concerned face appeared on the screen. "Oh, Miss Tracy, thank goodness!"

"Parker, what's happened?" Kerry asked.

"There was this truck driver," Parker said. "'e forced us h'off the road! Knocked me h'out with h'a dart. And it would h'appear that he's taken h'er Ladyship!"

The blood in every member of the International Rescue team ran cold. Transom and Mullion were not lying after all.

"That's right, Thunderbirds," said Transom, grinning with delight. "And when he kills your precious Lady Penelope, you know what it will feel like to lose someone close to your hearts."

But Karolina had a comeback that not even Mullion and Transom were prepared for. "No," she said. "Lady Penelope will not die as well as my father!" And with that, she ran and jumped back into her motorbike before racing off leaving Transom and Mullion completely bewildered.

"Wait…did she say what I think she said?" Mullion asked.

"She has to be lying," said Transom. "But unless…"

As Karolina's motorbike raced along the road, she sent a signal to the main section of Thunderbird 7. It swooped down and lowered its platform where she could be scooped up and lifted back into the craft before flying away.

Now they knew that Lady Penelope had been kidnapped, their next task was to find her before The Hood did anything bad to her, if he hadn't done so already. But with no clues as to where they could've gone, there was not a lot they could do. Both Kerry and Jodie were working furiously at their computers trying to get a signal lock on Penelope's watch for it had a location beacon, but so far they weren't coming up with anything.

"Where the hell do we even start?" Wizzy asked.

"This could be a very long wild goose chase, Dad," agreed Katie.

"We're not returning to base until we find her," said Daniel. "We'll head to England and start there."

"There has to be clues of some kind," said Kerry. "Karolina, did you get them to tell you anything?"

"Nothing," Karolina replied. "I'm going to fly to FAB1's location and see if I can locate anything."

"What would you expect to find?" asked Adrienne.

"Tyre tracks," said Jodie. "Karolina, if you use the Shadowbike's tyre scanner, you should be able to follow them and see where that truck ended up."

"F-A-B. I'm on it," said Karolina turning Thunderbird 7 to head towards London.

Laura and Leanna entered the lounge having heard something was wrong. "We heard the alarm," said Laura. "What's happening?"

"It's Lady Penelope," said Sian. "She's gone missing."

"The Hood's got her," said Jodie.

Leanna and Laura looked at each other, shocked. "We need to get out there," said Laura. "I'll take…"

"Laura, we have no idea where they are," said Daniel. "You could be flying around in the wrong area and wasting fuel. Kerry, have you got anything?"

"Negative," said Kerry. "I'm not getting anything at all."

This wasn't the news that they wanted to hear.

"But she's got to be out there somewhere!" said Joanne.

Then Karolina broke in with some news. "Thunderbird 7 to all. I've just been ordered by the Hendon Military Base to divert. They have an emergency situation going on. One of their aircraft is missing."

"What kind of aircraft?" asked Daniel.

"Dad, we're not looking for a missing aircraft!" said Katie hotly.

"We could be!" Daniel snapped back. "Karolina, go into stealth-mode and search around the base. See if you can find a pick-up truck."

"Okay…" said Karolina. She pressed a small blue button on her control console and Thunderbird 7's cloaking device activated. Not only was it completely invisible to radar, but also to the naked eye. The engines were also on silent meaning she could fly anywhere she wanted and nobody would have a clue she was there.

"Daniel," Kerry said. "Are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"

"That The Hood's abandoned his truck and stolen one of the fighters?" Daniel asked. "Yes, I am."

"Dad, with all due respect, that is one of the most ridiculous ideas I've ever heard," scoffed Adrienne. "Why the hell would The Hood kidnap Penelope and steal a jet-fighter?"

"To make a quick escape most likely," said Wizzy.

"And to warn off any potential pursuers," said Daniel.

"I see it!" Karolina said. "Looks like the base's Military Police have found it as well."

"So he was there," said Laura.

"Any idea what sort of jet he's stolen?" asked Beth.

"That I'm trying to find out," said Kerry. "Karolina, can you show us an image of the other aircraft at the base?"

"Stand-by," said Karolina. "Coming to you now."

A photo taken from one of Thunderbird 7's cameras appeared on their screens. It showed a very dark grey hypersonic rocket fighter which looked incredibly dangerous.

"Oh, God!" exclaimed Jodie. "Those are Tiger-Shark jets!"

"The most lethal in the world," added Daniel gritting his teeth.

"My God!" exclaimed Laura. "One of those in the hands of The Hood?!"

"And like Thunderbird 7, they are impossible to track," said Jodie. "They also have enough fuel to do a full circumnavigation of the globe if need be."

"He could be anywhere by now," said Wizzy.

The others hated to admit it but they knew Wizzy was right. They were going to need a miracle if they were going to get any clues as to Penelope and The Hood's whereabouts.

The stolen Tiger-Shark fighter was flying high above the ocean heading West. The Hood was in the front seat of the cockpit, now wearing a pilot's disguise whilst Penelope remained bound, blindfolded and gagged in the seat behind. The Hood could hear her muffled grunts as she tugged at her bonds.

"Stop your struggling, Lady Penelope," The Hood said. "We are almost there."

But Penelope wasn't trying to free herself. Instead she was trying to reach her watch. Using her fingers she was able to find the little dial on the side and push it. This began to transmit an emergency location beacon which she hoped would be picked up by International Rescue.

Kerry's eyes lit-up when the signal appeared on the holomap. "Bingo!" she said. "I've got her!"

"Where is she?" Daniel demanded.

"I'm just looking to see," Kerry said enhancing the map. Then she did a double-take at what she was seeing. "What the…? She's flying over the Pacific!"

"The Pacific?!" repeated Daniel. "We're bloody going the wrong way! Kerry, send us the signal and we'll close in on it. Karolina, you do the same."

"Can I help?" Laura asked.

"Yes, Laura," said Daniel. "Launch Thunderbird 1 and see if you can intercept them. Keep The Hood distracted until we get there."

"F-A-B," said Laura. She then turned to Leanna. "Meet me in Thunderbird 1."

"Oh yes!" said Leanna excitedly hurrying out from the room.

But Jodie and Joanne were quick to protest. "Hold on, Laura, you can't take Leanna with you!" Jodie said. "She's not trained!"

"Are you crazy?" added Joanne.

Laura scowled at them both as she grabbed the wall lamps. "She's just along for the ride," she said. "I won't let her do anything except observe." And with that, she tugged the lamps and the wall swivelled round.

"What's this?" Daniel asked having overheard part of what had just been said.

Jodie went to answer only for Joanne to cut across her. "Daniel, Laura's going to take Leanna out in Thunderbird 1."

Daniel's eyes narrowed. "Laura?"

"Dad, she's just going to observe," Laura answered from the express elevator as she headed down to Thunderbird 1. "I won't let anything happen to her."

"Is Beth not back?" Daniel asked.

"No, still five minutes out," said Jodie.

Daniel sighed. "Fine, Laura. I trust you," he said. "But DON'T let The Hood take any shots at you!"

"Relax, Dad. He won't!" said Laura determinedly. She was now at the bottom of the shaft and in her uniform. Leanna was there waiting in her new uniform as the retractable walkway took them to Thunderbird 1. Once inside, Laura sat in the pilot seat whilst Leanna sat in one of the two passenger seats behind. The trolley began to move Thunderbird 1 up the diagonal tunnel towards the launch bay under the pool once the walkway had retracted. At the same time the pool opened up ready for when it was in position.

"Ready, Leanna?" asked Laura once Thunderbird 1 had come to a stop.

"Ready, Laura," replied Leanna clutching the safety-bars in excitement.

5…4…3…2…1!

Thunderbird 1's engines roared as it rose up out of its silo and climbed high into the sky.

Cassidy, Sian and Joanne watched anxiously as Thunderbird 1 rocketed away into the distance.

"Do you think they can find Lady Penelope?" Cassidy asked anxiously. She and Sian had gotten very attached to Penelope since she'd rescued them from school.

"They will," Joanne said with confidence in her voice. But deep down, she was as scared and anxious as the rest of them were.

Jodie and Kerry looked at each other through their holoscreens. They didn't need to say anything for they already knew what the other was thinking.

The stolen Tiger-Shark fighter was now beginning to descend towards an island near Hawaii. The Hood smiled as he brought it down to land vertically in the square located in the village on the very south-side of the island. He climbed out before lifting a muffled protesting and struggling Penelope out of the back. He then looked at the church that was dominated by the huge mountain that stood behind it. He then looked left to right. There was nobody around. The village was deserted.

The Hood carried Penelope over to the church and pushed his back against the door. It was unlocked. "So they really did all leave in a hurry, didn't they," The Hood remarked as he carried Penelope inside. It was very silent and still inside the church. No artificial lights were on. The only form of light inside was shining in through the beautiful stained-glass windows. The Hood saw a wooden chair sitting near the altar which would do perfectly he decided. It didn't take very long for him to tightly bind Penelope to the chair before removing the blindfold so she could see him. Penelope fixed him a glare and made muffled grunts at him. "Do not be so afraid, Lady Penelope," The Hood said. "Sooner or later they will come for you. But it's simply a question of if they get here before or after it gets to you." Penelope began muffled shouting in anger at The Hood and began to tug hard at the ropes tying her to the chair. "Calm yourself, Lady Penelope," said The Hood stopping to look back at her from the entrance to the church. "He can't help you. And neither will International Rescue."

As the door closed, it was only now that Penelope realised who her captor was. The Hood! She said in her head. How could I have been so blind?! She tugged harder at her bonds desperately trying to free herself, but the ropes were too tight. Then she saw a hymn book nearby. On the cover of the book it said: St. Saviour's Church - Mestifa, Ouato. The name didn't mean a lot to Penelope except she was sure Ouato was in the Pacific Ocean meaning she was a lot nearer to Tracy Island than she'd originally thought. I don't know whether I was able to get a signal from my watch or not, but I need to try and warn them somehow, she thought. It was then that she had an idea. Although her feet were bound together with rope stretching out to the front legs of the chair, Penelope was able to lift her feet up and slam the heels her of boots down on the stone floor. This sent a new signal out which she hoped would be detected by Thunderbird 5.

Kerry jumped when the new signal was detected. "Guys, I've got another signal," she said. "This one appears to be stationary."

"Is it Penelope though?" Daniel asked.

"Affirmative," said Kerry. "And I can get a fix on her location."

"Guessing Laura will get there first," said Katie.

"Where is she, Kerry?" Daniel asked. But Kerry had gone strangely silent. "Kerry?"

"Oh, God!" Kerry gasped. "The Hood's taken her to Oauto!"

"Ouato?" repeated Wizzy. "What does that mean?"

Daniel and Laura both gritted their teeth. They knew what this meant.

"Kerry, are you positive that's where she is?" Daniel asked.

"100%," replied Kerry. "I'm moving Thunderbird 5 over the area to get some satellite footage."

"Thunderbird 1, how soon can you get there?" Daniel asked.

"E-T-A in four minutes," said Laura. "What about you?"

"Our E-T-A is nine," said Daniel. "What about you, Thunderbird 7?"

"Seven," Karolina said. "I'm slightly ahead of you."

"Well don't wait for us," said Daniel. "Get in there and get Penelope."

"Kerry, what state is the volcano in?" Daniel then asked.

"Quiet thankfully," Kerry replied. "No more trouble since you were there last time."

It was now that Katie, Adrienne and Wizzy suddenly remembered.

"Wait, hold up!" said Adrienne. "This isn't the volcano that he dealt with before Christmas, is it?!"

"The very same," said Daniel. "And I really hope The Hood's not going to do what I think he's going to do."

But Daniel's fear was about to come true. At that very moment, The Hood had returned to the stolen Tiger-Shark and was lifting off. He knew that International Rescue would by now be aware that Penelope was missing and would be looking for her. Now he needed to create the extreme peril that would threaten Penelope and put her life in danger. He carefully guided the fighter over the church and towards the volcano. Bringing it to a hover about half a mile away from the crater, he locked four of the missiles onto it before firing them one by one at it. The missiles exploded, ripping big chunks of rock out from the mountainside and causing a fresh stream of lava to start seeping out. This also reawakened the volcano which began to rumble once more.

Penelope was very seldom afraid, but this was one situation that was beginning to make her shiver. Oh dear, what will become of me? Penelope asked herself.

What The Hood didn't realise was that International Rescue was closer than he'd expected. Kerry had brought Thunderbird 5 into an orbit directly above Hawaii. Kerry was watching him through the long-range cameras and was horrified when she saw that the volcano was releasing lava again. "Guys, hurry it up! He's set the volcano off again!" she cried.

The blood in every single member of International Rescue ran as cold as ice. Laura and Leanna gasped when they saw a small plume of smoke rising on the horizon.

"Is that it?" Leanna asked.

"It is," said Laura. "Hold tight. We're going in."

"Be careful of the ash, Laura," warned Daniel.

"Forget the ash, be careful of that fighter!" said Jodie. "Your ships are strong, but so is that fighter."

"She's right," agreed Kerry.

Laura then spotted an object approaching them from the left. "Speak of the devil," she said. "Here it is now."

"Everyone silent," Daniel snapped. "I want to hear what he has to say."

Everyone fell silent and tuned their radios in to Thunderbird 1s. The Hood brought the fighter level to Thunderbird 1 and began to speak. "Tiger-Shark 4 to Thunderbird 1. Your precious Lady Penelope is in a bit of a tight spot. You will land your craft in the village and search for her. She could be in one of many buildings so be quick about it."

"And if we don't?" Laura asked.

"Then she dies," said The Hood with a sinister chuckle. "And so will you if you don't get out before the lava strikes."

"You're a sick man, you know that, don't you, Belargant," said Daniel.

The Hood was taken by surprise. "Excuse me?" he said.

"Cut the act, we know its you," said Daniel.

"We also know that you're The Hood," added Laura.

The Hood was very surprised. "What? How?!" he demanded.

"Your brother told us, right before his passing," Daniel said. "They were his last words."

Now The Hood was shocked. "My brother is…dead?!" he asked.

"That last attack you did after you left us finished him off," said Daniel. "Now you can no longer be a massive arse in his life. He's at peace finally."

The Hood growled. "It matters not!" he snapped. "He was never much use to me anyway!"

This made everyone's blood boil. He really was as cold and uncaring as they'd believed.

"What else, Belargant?" Daniel went on. "How many other times have you been causing us trouble?"

"Ever since the beginning, Tracy," said The Hood. "It was I who planted the bomb on the Fireflash on its maiden flight. It was I who tried to steal the secrets of the Atomic Irrigation Plants in Australia and Africa. It was I who sabotaged the Red Arrow test flights. It was I who hounded your colleagues at Lake Anasta. It was I who tried to dispose of those meddling boys who you took a shine to in Australia. And it was also I who made a mess of the filming set in Nevada by trapping those actors inside."

The International Rescue teams suspicions were becoming clear. It was all making sense now. Several of them began to have flashbacks. First the airliner Fireflash which was unable to land on its maiden flight at London Heathrow Airport. The Atomic Irrigation Plants that had exploded in Australia a year before they had started as well as the one in the Sahara Desert where Lady Penelope had been spooked by a tiny robotic mouse that The Hood had used to spy on the complex. The two Red Arrow fighter jets that had crashed at Heathrow and into the UK TV-Relay Tower in Warwickshire. But the most shocking were those of Lake Anasta where Jodie, Karolina and Wizzy realised it was The Hood who'd hypnotised them and attacked Thunderbird 4 with his own sub; and for Laura who had chased the intruder at Dunsley Tracker and after the film set incident. All of this along with many since then had always been the same person.

It was only when an explosion from the volcano occurred that Laura snapped out of her thoughts.

"You have choice, International Rescue," said The Hood. "You can either stop me, or attempt a rescue of Lady Penelope. You can't do both. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHA!"

And before Laura could say another word, the Tiger-Shark's afterburners fired and it rocketed away.

"You utter sick bas-"

"Laura!" Kerry barked. "Forget him! Get Penelope!"

So Laura turned Thunderbird 1 back and raced as fast as it would go towards the island. As they went, suddenly a streak of black shot across in front of them. It was Thunderbird 7.

"Karolina?!" Laura exclaimed. "Watch it!"

"I'LL END HIM!" Karolina roared. "I SWEAR!"

Leanna and Laura looked at each other. They didn't like to think for a second what Karolina would do once she'd caught up with her uncle, but they had to save Penelope by any means necessary. As they flew over the island, they could see the lava was almost at the village. The ash from the cloud was falling across the island like black hailstones which began to bounce off Thunderbird 1's hull.

"Thunderbird 5, please tell me you know where she is," said Laura.

"Got her!" said Kerry. "She's in the church!"

"That lava's way too close!" Adrienne remarked having been watching the footage from Thunderbird 5 on the monitor beside her. "Laura, can you even get her out and get airborne again in time?"

"I'll have a damn good go at it," said Laura. "Preparing to land."

"Impossible," said Jodie. "I've been doing some calculations. Judging by the flow of the lava, it will surround the church in less than three minutes. You're not even on the ground yet. The minimum it could take you Laura is four minutes."

"That's…not enough," Beth said. She had returned to Tracy Island and was with Zoe, Joanne, Cassidy and Sian by the desk.

"I have to try!" said Laura stubbornly.

"I'll do it." A stunned silence fell upon the team. It was Leanna who had spoken. "Let me rescue her," she said. "I can get out, get Penelope and when we get back aboard, you can lift off straight away."

"Leanna, you can't. You haven't been trained!" Laura protested.

"SO WHAT?!" Leanna thundered. "LADY PENELOPE'S ABOUT TO DIE! WE CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN!"

Everyone fell silent and looked at Daniel. He wasn't happy with this anymore than they were. But he also knew that Leanna was right. "Do it," he said. "And Leanna, good luck."

There was nothing anyone else could say or do. Daniel had spoken. Laura lowered the landing legs as Thunderbird 1 descended upon the village and landed in the square in front of the church. They could see the lava approaching. It looked very deadly and menacing. Laura opened the hatch and Leanna jumped out. It was lucky she'd remembered to put her helmet on for the ash that was falling was knocking hard on top of it.

"I can do this, I can do this," Leanna said out loud to herself as she sprinted towards the door located round to the rear of the church and round the side. This was near to where the lava was so she wasn't going to have much time to get in, get Penelope and get her out again before it reached it. Leanna kicked the door open and ran inside. Looking down the aisle, her eyes widened when she saw a frantic Penelope tugging desperately at her bonds with wide eyes and was screaming from under her gag. Leanna had sudden flashbacks from when she had been kidnapped earlier in the year and had been tied up in almost the exact same way. But she could hear the rumbling of the volcano and it forced her to act. She sprinted down the aisle and peeled the tape off Penelope's mouth. "Are you okay, Lady Penelope?" she asked as she began to untie her.

"Do I look okay?" Penelope replied indignantly. "Just get me out of here!"

Leanna worked quickly to release the ropes around Penelope and the chair. Then she helped her up.

"Thank you, La-" Penelope broke off suddenly when she realised who it was who was standing next to her. "Leanna?!"

CRASH! Both gasped to see the door off the church sudden collapse as the boiling hot lava began to flood in.

"LEANNA, GET OUT OF THERE?!" Kerry and Laura's voices simultaneously screamed through the radio in Leanna's helmet.

Leanna and Penelope backed away. Fear was flooding through their veins. From what they knew that was the only door into the church. There had to be another somewhere but there was no time to search for it. It was then that Leanna had an idea. "Laura, has the lava reached the window nearest to you?" she asked.

"No, but it'll be there in less than ten seconds," Laura replied. "Just get out of there!"

Leanna grabbed the chair that Penelope had been tied to and threw it as hard as she could at the large stained-glass window. The window shattered and Leanna lept onto a wooden box beside it before glancing out at the lava which was at the next window along. "Now Lady P, jump!" she said.

Penelope passed Leanna and jumped down to the ground. She did a forward roll and got out the way as Leanna jumped down and did the same. The lava was just inches from their feet so they both legged it as fast as they could towards Thunderbird 1. Leanna had to throw her left arm over Penelope's head to protect it from the falling ash.

"Oh dear, this will mess up my hair," Penelope remarked as they reached Thunderbird 1.

As Penelope climbed into Thunderbird 1, Leanna glanced back to see the lava had now completely surrounded the church and all of its wooden features were burning. Leanna then scrambled up after Penelope and the ladder and hatch retracted and closed.

"Hold tight!" Laura said firing up Thunderbird 1's VTOL thrusters and it lifted off into the air barely a second before the lava reached the landing legs. Leanna and Penelope strapped themselves into the passenger seats as Thunderbird climbed away from the village. As they looked back down, they saw the doomed church collapse completely and the lava began to engulf the other buildings in the village.

"Thunderbird 1 to Thunderbird 2, 5 and base," Laura said. "I've got them. Leanna and Penelope are both safe."

Everyone cheered. Katie, Adrienne and Wizzy all high-fived. Joanne hugged Sian and Cassidy and Zoe hugged Beth. Rosie and Jodie just grinned at each other whilst Kerry cleared out the lump in her throat.

"Bring her back to the island, Laura," said Daniel. "Parker's en-route with FAB1."

"F-A-B, Dad," said Laura. "Over and out."

Thunderbird 1 flew ahead with Thunderbird 2 following not too far behind.

"That just leaves only one thing," said Daniel. "Kerry, how's Thunderbird 7?"

"According to my scans, she's closing in now," said Kerry.

"What's she going to do?" Wizzy asked.

"Whatever she wants," said Daniel.

"You're not going to stop her?" asked Katie, surprised.

"No," said Daniel. "This is hers to decide. Not mine."

Katie, Adrienne and Wizzy exchanged looks. They felt this wasn't going to end well for The Hood.

The Hood was racing across the Pacific Ocean very confident of his victory. He was convinced that there was no way that International Rescue could stop him or even save Lady Penelope. "It is done," The Hood said to himself. "International Rescue will lose one of their own and soon their forces will be weakened. Soon their secrets will be mine!"

"You wanna bet?"

The Hood glanced out of his left window and blinked. A Thunderbird craft that he had never seen before was flying alongside his Tiger-Shark. He was even more shocked when he saw who was in the cockpit. "You?!" he exclaimed.

"Hello…uncle!" said Karolina coldly.

"NO!" The Hood shouted and made his jet go even faster. He was now desperate to get away.

Thunderbird 7 chased after the Tiger-Shark. Both aircraft flew high and low and swooped around over the sea trying to outmanoeuver the other.

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" The Hood roared.

"No, uncle," Karolina replied. "You killed my father. Now I'm going to take you down." She used her computer to lock onto the Tiger-Shark and fired a missile. It scored a direct hit on the port wing snapping it off.

"NO!" The Hood cried as it spiralled down out of control towards the sea. "NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Karolina watched as the aircraft hit the water and exploded. She then flew down and hovered above the wreckage. She looked around, but there was no sign of The Hood. "Good riddance," she said before flying Thunderbird 7 away. But as she made her way back towards Tracy Island, she began to feel bad. Despite all that The Hood had done, to kill him was not how Kyrano would've wanted it. She didn't feel any remorse for The Hood, but she felt bad that she'd let her father down.

Karolina was the last to reach Tracy Island. Penelope had cleaned up and had eaten some food and was feeling a lot better. So was a very relieved Parker who had managed to fly the damaged FAB1 to the island for repairs.

"Oh, m'lady," Parker said. "I h'am so fired, h'aren't I?"

"Nonsense, Parker," replied Penelope. "None of this was your fault. It's not the first time I've been in a situation like this and it probably won't be the last."

"The less the better though, Penny," said Daniel. "One of these days we may not get to you in time."

Penelope nodded. "True, Daniel, true."

All eyes turned to see Karolina enter the room. They noticed immediately that she looked unhappy.

"Karolina, you okay?" Daniel asked.

"I guess so, Mr Tracy," Karolina replied.

"Did you get him?" asked Beth.

"I shot his plane down," said Karolina. "I didn't see any trace of him."

There was silence as everyone exchanged looks.

"I'm sorry, Mr Tracy," said Karolina. "If he's dead, I've failed."

Everyone was surprised.

"But isn't that what you wanted?" asked Wizzy.

Karolina shook her head. "That was my grief and rage that did," she said, turning to look at the setting sun. "But my humanity returned afterwards. Killing isn't what International Rescue stands for. I'm sorry."

Daniel walked over and put something in Karolina's hand. It was a glass of wine. "Not everyone can be saved, Karolina," he said. "I say this many times. We just do what we can do. If your uncle did survive and is foolish enough to return, we will be ready for him." He then turned and beckoned Leanna over to join him. "I would like to propose a toast," he announced. "To Leanna and Karolina - the heroes of the day!"

"Leanna and Karolina!" the others all joined in.

Leanna and Karolina beamed with pride.


	8. Post-Credits

As darkness fell across the Pacific Ocean, a small yellow dinghy made its way slowly westwards. Sitting inside was The Hood who somehow had managed to survive the crash of the Tiger-Shark fighter. He was cold, hungry and tired, for once again, his plans had been foiled.

"A thousand curses on International Rescue," The Hood said darkly to himself. "One day, I will have my revenge! Now if only I could remember where that base of theirs was…"


End file.
